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Chamber and committees

Official Report: search what was said in Parliament

The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.  

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 5 May 2021
  6. Current session: 12 May 2021 to 14 July 2025
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Displaying 1138 contributions

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Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

Did you ask anybody to sign a non-disclosure agreement, or did the system ask anybody to do that and to leave their post?

Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

Either.

Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

How many complaints have you had about your conduct during your career?

Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

Did you watch the evidence session with Shane O’Neill, Blair Grubb and the interim chair? I inferred earlier that you had not watched it, but you had.

Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

No, I am referring to the evidence session with Shane O’Neill, Blair Grubb and Tricia Bey. Did you watch that one?

Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

It did not require the benefit of hindsight, though. There were fires going on and there were warnings across the system of higher education, not only in Scotland but across the UK. There were alarm bells. Surely the two pictures did not match up. All of that was going on outside of your university, so did you think that you were unique and that there was no impact greater than what you had already identified? Surely you were asking questions.

Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

Just pay the £150,000 back. That would be a start, would it not? To hold on to that just seems astonishing, given the pain that other people are feeling. I know that it is not on the scale of the £35 million deficit, but it would at least be an indication that you understand.

I will not press that any more, but I genuinely want you to think about that, because I think that, although it would not repair the damage, it would send an important message.

A year ago, in this very building, you gave evidence to this committee. At the time, you told me:

“I am delighted to say that our universities in Scotland are actually quite well run”,

and you went on to say:

“I do not at the moment see any risk to survival.”

Then you said:

“We are well-run institutions. Time will be my witness in this, but I personally see no risk to the viability of universities going forward.”—[Official Report, Education, Children and Young People Committee,12 June 2024; c 5-6.]

At the same time, you knew that the cash reserves at the university were in steep decline; that the university had a potential breach of the banking covenant—although you said this morning that you were not aware of that; that the Times Higher Education world university rankings had Dundee dropping out of the top 250; and that there was an £8 million hole in that year’s budget, with no plans in place to deliver the savings that were necessary to move into a surplus position. So, a year ago, were you delusional or incompetent, or was there something else? I cannot understand why you would have said what you said to me, knowing all those things.

Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

I have two questions. First, that individual said that there were others at Leicester university who knew about your behaviour, and it was widespread; it was widely known. Secondly, in your first answer to me, you said, “Certainly not.” I cannot remember what period you were referring to, but I am sure that you implied that you were talking about your time at Dundee university. Before you were at Leicester university, were there any other times when there were complaints that you were aware of, or people objecting to your behaviour? Was there any of that at any time?

Come on—you would remember such things, surely. They are a direct criticism of your behaviour. I would certainly know if people were complaining about my behaviour. Is there nothing else?

Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

—and “final salary pension.” There is no point in going over it again, but for you to have denied it initially, when this person felt so strongly about it and when it affected their life so deeply, and for you not to recall it—I am afraid that that tells us a lot about you.

Education, Children and Young People Committee [Draft]

University of Dundee

Meeting date: 26 June 2025

Willie Rennie

Their words are “completely broken”—