Thank you, convener and members of the committee. I do not need to introduce my colleagues, given that the convener has done it so eloquently.
I have to thank you all for this opportunity. What you are doing is incredibly useful, as all the questions that you have rightfully been asking run completely in parallel with the audit that you would expect us to be doing.
This is a great opportunity to talk about the Glasgow School of Art, our Mackintosh building, our commitment to it and our approach to its management, conservation, restoration and now, of course, the rebuild. I also want to talk about the significant and very important contribution that the Glasgow School of Art and the Mackintosh building make to Glasgow and indeed to Scotland’s national cultural identity and creative impact.
We are without doubt experiencing one of the most difficult periods in our school’s proud history, but despite that challenge, we are continuing to meet our responsibilities to our staff, to our students and their educational needs, and to Scotland by delivering on the commitments detailed in our Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council outcome agreement.
We are fully aware of the disruption to and impact on our local community, and I particularly want to express our deep gratitude to our neighbours—the residents and the businesses—for their long-standing understanding and patience and our continuing dialogue. We are, of course, extremely grateful to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Police Scotland, Historic Environment Scotland and Glasgow City Council for all their professionalism and support.
There has always been significant public interest in the Mackintosh building, so it is understandable that people want to know what happened and, just as important, what is going to happen next. The rumours and speculation that were widespread following the fire in June are also totally understandable, given the fire in 2014, and I assure the convener and the committee that no one wants answers more than we do.
We know that the 2014 fire was accidental, but, like everybody else, we do not know the cause of the second fire, and speculation about it is not really that helpful to or supportive of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service’s on-going investigation. However, we took every possible step above and beyond the standard in specifying the contract terms, including fire precautions, for the Mackintosh building restoration project. Far from standing back complacently, we maintained day-to-day supervision of the project works, both on and off site.
The tragedy is that just before the fire the contractor was doing an absolutely stunning and beautiful job. The project was on time and on budget, and it would have returned for our staff, our students and, importantly, the people of Glasgow one of the world’s most important buildings, one of the most seminal buildings in which to study art, design and architecture, and a building that everyone can visit and be part of.
We recognise the interest and concern of the wider community across Scotland and beyond—and, indeed, the interest of this committee—with regard to what happens next. The board and the staff are completely clear about the importance of the Mackintosh building to the educational experience of our students and its contribution to the global position of Glasgow and to Scotland’s cultural and creative identity, which is so important. As you know, that position has been reinforced by many contributors to the committee’s discussions, which has been very helpful, and Glasgow School of Art is clear about and very strong in its resolve to restore the Mackintosh building to its rightful place at the centre of education and to the city itself as an open and accessible working school of art. I am sure that you can see why, as custodians of the Mackintosh building, we are not apologising for telling you over and over again about that determination and commitment.
We think that our written submission, which we hope you all have, is as comprehensive and as detailed as we can make it, and there are a number of accompanying documents. We will be absolutely delighted to answer any questions arising from them, and if you feel that any appendices are missing, we can supply them later on.
Thank you, convener.