I hope that this note finds you well.

I am very concerned that the cuts you have announced to funding for FE colleges risks doing damage to the economic prospects for Dundee and Angus.  Colleges play a vital part in creating the skilled workforce that the economy needs.  They will play an especially critical role in producing the skills we need to give Scotland a global leadership role in renewable energy and to keep us at the forefront of this growing industry.

I can see no obvious justification for subjecting colleges to such severe cuts when they have never been so important in getting the economy growing.  The cuts that colleges will have to bear appear disproportionately large relative to other parts of the public sector and they seem to entirely contradict the Scottish Government’s public announcements that growing the economy sustainably is its ‘number one’ priority.

I know the management teams at our two local colleges – Dundee and Angus – very well.   I would describe them as ‘down to earth’ and ‘grounded’.  So, when they tell me that the scale of the cuts that they will have to make, on top of the massive cuts they have already absorbed this year, threatens their ability to meet the needs of the students, businesses and communities that they serve, then I take those warnings very seriously. 

This Chamber is first and foremost an SME, and like all SMEs we run a ‘lean’, cost-effective business.  I expect the public sector to do the same when it spends taxpayers’ money, and if I thought for one minute that Angus College or Dundee College were inefficient and wasted public money then I would have no hesitation in supporting your announcement. 

But, because of the close working relationship we have with them, I know that is not the case.  They are already very efficient organisations and they are already in the forefront of collaborative working with other colleges and higher education institutions.  The First Minister acknowledged this when he opened Dundee College’s Gardyne Campus last week.   So, in the case of Dundee and Angus, I fail to see how the planned cuts can do anything other than threaten the quality and quantity of their course provision.    Even the best management teams can’t cut waste if there is no waste left to cut.

I understand that the UK Government’s decision to freeze Council tax in England will result in extra Barnett Consequential Funding for Scotland.  I urge you to use some of this money to make good the cuts you announced in your budget, so that Dundee College and Angus College can continue the great work they do to deliver quality education to their students, and provide the skilled workforce that allow local businesses grow and generate the tax revenues that you need to fund the social programmes that are so important to you.

I look forward to receiving your comments on this matter but want to conclude by reminding you that my President, Chris Lundie, wrote to you earlier this year inviting you back to Dundee for another meeting with our members.   I hope that you will be able to accept. 

Alan Mitchell

Chief Executive