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Daily Record
18-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Boss of cash-strapped Scots uni who enjoyed Barbados junket faces no confidence vote
The Sunday Mail revealed the University of the West of Scotland's Professor James Miller claimed £37,429 in travelling expenses over the last two years visiting exotic locations. The head of a cash-strapped university is facing a vote of no confidence from staff after the Sunday Mail revealed he spent more than £37,000 on foreign junkets. We told how fat cat Professor James Miller, principal and vice-chancellor of the University of the West of Scotland (UWS), claimed an astonishing £37,429 in expenses over the last two years visiting exotic locations which included Dubai, Kuala Lumpur and South Africa. The revelations come as lecturers at the UWS have voted in favour of industrial action over compulsory redundancies at the university after the institution recorded a £14.4million deficit in 2023/24. The 61-year-old uni boss, who earns £288,000 a year including pension contributions, is among 12 senior uni staff - who have claimed more than £163,000 in expenses in less than two years. The USW have again refused to confirm to the Sunday Mail which luxury hotels the professor stayed in on foreign trips or whether he flew business class. They also confirmed Professor Miller had the use of a car and driver for work - but denied he had a 'chauffeur'. The lavish spending was criticised by unions who said a vote of no confidence would be put to members at the university and that members would move to strike. UNISON regional organiser John Mooney said: 'Our members have had enough and have voted to be issued with strike ballots. 'This spending on executive's international travel, while the deficit rises by millions of pounds and they cut jobs and student services shows an astounding level of mismanagement. 'The unions are making every effort to try to protect what jobs they can and find agreements on voluntary redundancies. 'We will move towards a full strike ballot and will put a vote of no confidence to our members at the university.' In an indicative ballot which closed last week, 85per cent of EIS members who voted backed industrial action over compulsory redundancy at the university. Assistant General Secretary David Belsey said: 'The members at UWS have collectively delivered a strong turnout and clear message to the university – no compulsory redundancies. 'This result should leave UWS management under no illusions about the strength of feeling amongst EIS ULA members and their willingness to take action to defend jobs.' We revealed last week that a trip to Barbados by Prof Miller for 'a Strategic Partnership Agreement' cost £5970 for flights and hotel stays in November 2023. In October 2023 Professor Miller spent £5631.09 on a trip to attend COP28 Partnership Meetings in Dubai and £5867.28 on return flights to South Africa to present at the GEC+Africa 2024 Congress last February. Other expenses included trips to Nigeria, Dubai, the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur as well to New York. Shadow Tory education secretary Miles Briggs: 'This lavish spending from top bosses has rightly angered other staff and students. 'At a time of looming job cuts senior figures astonishingly still thought it was appropriate to spend such levels of money on international visits.' UWS has campuses in Ayr, Dumfries, Lanarkshire, London and Paisley and employs around 2000 staff and had a student headcount of 21,000 in the 23/24 academic year. In April the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) announced its teaching allocations for higher education institutions at £727m for the 2025-26 academic year. The same month both EIS and Unison opened indicative ballots for strike action at UWS. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
Scottish Sun
11-05-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Scots uni boss slammed over ‘eye-watering' travel expenses as staff face job losses
One politician said 'eyebrows will be raised' Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A SCOTS uni boss has been slammed by politicians for splashing out on trips abroad when hundreds of staff at the institution face job losses. Professor James Miller, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) claimed £37,429 in travel expenses over the last two years. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 Professor James Miller claimed £37,429 in travelling costs Credit: Crichton Foundation 2 It comes as lecturers and staff ballot for potential strike action Credit: University of the West of Scotland This includes trips to Dubai, Kuala Lumpur and South Africa, reports the Sunday Mail. Lecturers and staff are balloting for potential strike action after the uni posted a deficit of £14.4million in 2023/24. UWS refused to confirm whether Professor Miller travelled on first or business class flights. Politicians slammed the costs as "eye-watering" amid difficult times for the university. Scottish Conservative shadow cabinet secretary for education and skills Miles Briggs said: 'Eyebrows will be raised at this spending on overseas trips while the university faces cuts." Scottish Labour Education spokesperson Pam Duncan-Glancy added: "At a time when university finances are stretched to breaking point and jobs are at risk, it is vital that every penny is being spent wisely." A trip to Barbados cost £5,970 for flights and hotel accommodation in November 2023. This was for "a Strategic Partnership Agreement" and saw the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between The University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill Campus and UWS. £5,631.09 was also spent by Professor Miller on flights and accommodation to attend COP28 Partnership Meetings in Dubai and £5,867.28 on return flights to South Africa. A journey to Abuja, Nigeria, came in at £5,058.81 and a trip to Dubai for graduation ceremonies cost £3,717.98. Major Scots university to axe 632 jobs as staff left 'in tears' A spokesperson for the UWS said: "Like all universities, growing our income through onshore international student recruitment and global transnational education is essential to the financial sustainability of the University and necessitates travel, the cost of which is more than offset, by orders of magnitude, through the income secured – income that funds several hundred jobs." A Scottish Government spokesperson added: "Universities are autonomous institutions and matters relating to remuneration and expenditure are for them to determine. "Scotland's universities make a valuable contribution to our economy and wider society. Ministers listened closely to the sector in the development of this year's budget, and we are investing over £1.1 billion in university teaching and research in 2025-26. "Ministers continue to engage with the sector and are open to exploring the future funding model of universities, but we are clear that this Government will not reintroduce tuition fees. "Access to higher education must be based on the ability to learn, not the ability to pay. Broader financial pressures facing the sector remain, including the UK Government's migration policies, employee National Insurance contributions, and inflationary pressures."
