Latest news with #STUCCongress
The National
29-04-2025
- Business
- The National
Dundee University 'backtracks' on job cuts in new plan
Due to a £35 million deficit, the university had initially said it would need to shed 632 full time equivalent (FTE) positions, which would impact around 700 members of staff. But under new proposals devised and released on Tuesday, 'up to 300' FTE will now be lost through a voluntary redundancy scheme. READ MORE: Scottish university staff set to strike at troubled institution Previously, the university had been unable to rule out compulsory redundancies. Under the new plan, the institution will also seek to borrow cash, as well as changing to a new operating model through the 're-configuration of our academic units and professional services'. But on Tuesday, principal Professor Shane O'Neill said the new plan will need to be backed by 'significant additional public funding'. 'A new alternative approach was presented to the university court this morning and they have given their endorsement to this as a revised direction of travel towards financial sustainability,' he said. O'Neill said: 'There are still several challenging steps to be taken in order to clear this pathway to progress. 'We also need to ensure that the steps we take do succeed in allowing us to access commercial lending, as that will be essential for long-term sustainability. 'The proposed route forward will require significant additional public funding. We are engaged in discussions, through the Scottish Funding Council, as we look to secure that support over the next two years, including any related conditions and assurances. 'Further liquidity support funding may also be required. READ MORE: Green MSP becomes rector of struggling Dundee University 'We are now working to develop the full details of the proposed pathway and on plans for implementation. This will include details of a voluntary severance scheme. 'We will continue to engage with staff, students and union leaders as we consult on the details of this alternative way forward and begin to implement it. 'This is a significant step towards a more sustainable future for the university and the ongoing delivery of excellent education, research and enterprise.' The announcement comes as dozens of protesters gathered outside the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) annual congress in Dundee on the issue. Campaigners marched from the university campus to outside Caird Hall in Dundee, where the STUC Congress is taking place until Wednesday. Campaigners gathered outside Caird Hall in Dundee against the planned cuts at Dundee University (Image: Andrew Milligan) As a result of the revelations about the university's financial woes, the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) launched an investigation into the cause, led by former Glasgow Caledonian University principal Professor Pamela Gillies. The University and College Union (UCU) Dundee Branch welcomed the university "backtracking" on its original plans. READ MORE: Scottish university warned by union body chief not to use staff as 'cannon-fodder' Branch co-president Melissa D'Ascenzio said: 'It is a relief that University management has backed away from the brutal plans to cut up to 700 jobs. 'This backtracking is in no doubt down to the relentless pressure from UCU, from all the campus unions and the support they've received from the city of Dundee, local communities and from across the political spectrum. 'Given the news of this new plan, we're urging the employer to take compulsory redundancies off the table, so as we can work with the employer towards a sustainable, successful university that values its staff and students, and continues to deliver the world-class teaching and research.'
Daily Record
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Daily Record
Kneecap break silence after John Swinney demands they are axed from TRNSMT festival
Kneecap have hit back after John Swinney demanded they were axed from the TRNSMT festival line-up. The First Minister called for the Belfast rap trio to be banned from the festival after footage emerged appearing to show them calling for the deaths of Tory MPs. In the video from the November 2023 concert, one band member appeared to say: 'The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP.' Swinney condemned the alleged comments by Kneecap as 'completely and utterly unacceptable' and said: 'I cannot see how they can perform at TRNSMT.' The Metropolitan Police also said that another video from last year is being assessed. That footage appeared to show a band member shouting "up Hamas, up Hezbollah" at a performance in London. The Belfast group is set to play at the Glasgow festival on July 11 but Swinney demanded a rethink. He told journalists at the STUC Congress in Dundee: 'The language that you have put to me is completely and utterly unacceptable. There is no way that is acceptable. It's not acceptable in a debate about free speech. It's just completely beyond the pale. "That makes it incredibly difficult for a band like Kneecap to perform at TRNSMT because I think they have crossed a line, to be honest. It would be unacceptable for me for the band to perform on such a stage given the fact their comments are so beyond the pale.' He added: 'I think TRNSMT have got to respond to that.' However, in response, Kneecap have now issued a furious statement insisting the footage has been taken out of context. In a statement posted on X, the Belfast group comprising Liam Og O Hannaidh, Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh said they 'reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual'. They said footage had been deliberately taken out of context and was being 'exploited and weaponised'. The band has claimed it is facing a co-ordinated smear campaign after speaking out about the conflict in Gaza. Kneecap insisted it has never supported Hamas or Hezbollah and it condemned all attacks on civilians. And the trio also apologised to the families of murdered MPs Sir David Amess and Jo Cox. 'To the Amess and Cox families, we send our heartfelt apologies, we never intended to cause you hurt,' said the statement. 'Kneecap's message has always been — and remains — one of love, inclusion, and hope. This is why our music resonates across generations, countries, classes and cultures and has brought hundreds of thousands of people to our gigs. No smear campaign will change that. ' Labour MP Ms Cox was stabbed and shot in 2016 while Conservative Sir David was stabbed to death in 2021. Sir David's daughter Katie criticised the band after the footage emerged. On Monday, Sir Keir Starmer's official spokesman said the Prime Minister believed the recent comments attributed to the band in the footage were 'completely unacceptable' and 'condemns them in the strongest possible terms'. Mrs Badenoch said Kneecap's 'anti-British hatred has no place in our society' and that it is 'good' the police are looking into the allegations, adding: 'Kneecap's glorification of terrorism and anti-British hatred has no place in our society. After the murder of Sir David Amess, this demands prosecution.' Mrs Badenoch blocked a government grant to the bilingual Belfast group while she was business secretary. But in November last year, Kneecap won a discrimination challenge over the decision to refuse them a £14,250 funding award after the UK government conceded it was 'unlawful'. Downing Street indicated there would be no further public funds directed towards Kneecap. 'I don't think organisations such as that should be receiving taxpayers' money,' the Prime Minister's spokesman said. Meanwhile, Labour MP David Taylor has written to the organisers of the Glastonbury Festival, urging them to remove Kneecap from this year's line-up. Kneecap also faced criticism in the US over its recent performance during the major music festival Coachella, held in California. At Coachella, Kneecap displayed messages which read: 'Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people'; 'It is being enabled by the US government who arm and fund Israel despite their war crimes'; and 'F*** Israel. Free Palestine'. In a lengthy statement addressing the series of controversies, the band said: 'They want you to believe words are more harmful than genocide. Establishment figures, desperate to silence us, have combed through hundreds of hours of footage and interviews, extracting a handful of words from months or years ago to manufacture moral hysteria. 'Let us be unequivocal: we do not, and have never, supported Hamas or Hezbollah. We condemn all attacks on civilians, always. It is never okay. We know this more than anyone, given our nation's history. We also reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual. Ever. 'An extract of footage, deliberately taken out of all context, is now being exploited and weaponised, as if it were a call to action. This distortion is not only absurd – it is a transparent effort to derail the real conversation. 'All two million Palestinian people in Gaza are currently being starved to death by Israel. At least 20,000 children in Gaza have been killed. The British government continues to supply arms to Israel, even after scores of NHS doctors warned Keir Starmer in August that children were being systematically executed with sniper shots to the head. 'Instead of defending innocent people or the principles of international law, the powerful in Britain have abetted slaughter and famine. This is where real anger and outrage should be directed towards.' The statement added: 'Suddenly, days after calling out the US administration at Coachella to applause and solidarity, there is an avalanche of outrage and condemnation by the political classes of Britain. The real crimes are not in our performances; the real crimes are the silence and complicity of those in power. Shame on them.' Counter-terrorism police are assessing footage reportedly from the November 2024 gig in London's Kentish Town Forum and the November 2023 concert. On Sunday, a Metropolitan Police spokesman said: 'We were made aware of a video on April 22, believed to be from an event in November 2024, and it has been referred to the counter-terrorism internet referral unit for assessment and to determine whether any further police investigation may be required. We have also been made aware of another video believed to be from an event in November 2023.' He also said the force 'are assessing both to determine whether further police investigation is required'. The counter-terrorism internet referral unit (CTIRU) is based within the Met's Counter Terrorism Command which is dedicated to identifying terrorist and extremist material online. Police will carry out an investigation if the material breaches the law. The band released a critically acclaimed autobiographical film last year which was nominated for an Oscar. The Record contacted DF Concerts - which runs TRNSMT - for comment.
Daily Mail
28-04-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
GRAHAM GRANT: Will Swinney swallow his pride and give us all a tax break next week? Only the most foolhardy would get their hopes up
Have you lost count of the number of times 'full-on John' Swinney has tried to re-set his failing government? You're not alone, but the next refresh is on Thursday next week - when he will produce a policy agenda for the year ahead. These announcements are normally made in September - but the Scottish election is looming, in May 2026. The First Minister has brought the programme for government forward this year because he wants to stress that he's 'laser-focused on delivery'. So, he's really firing the starting pistol on the SNP 's election campaign - but it hasn't delivered anything other than failure and division for much of the past 20 years. The smart money is on a continuation of the status quo - with some more 'freebies' thrown in as a sweetener. But times are lean for public coffers thanks to the SNP's financial incompetence, so the chances of anything spectacular are limited - and then there's the sensitive topic of Scottish independence. Mr Swinney will have to bang the drum for his party's raison d'être - but he knows it's toxic territory for the majority of Scots. Yet May 6 is an opportunity to tackle one of the greatest injustices of the SNP's long reign – one for which it is responsible. The cross-Border tax gap is a barrier to economic growth – something which Mr Swinney says he wants to promote. It means the hard-working young professionals we desperately want to attract and retain are giving Scotland a wide berth. As we reported yesterday, business leaders have demanded an independent review into whether SNP taxes are killing Scotland's competitiveness. CBI Scotland wants Mr Swinney to commission a study on 'tax divergence' with the rest of the UK as part of his plans for the final year of this parliament. A review isn't necessary but there is a need for urgent action to tear up an iniquitous tax regime which penalises anyone with a shred of ambition. Under the SNP budget for 2025/26, Scots earning more than £30,318 will pay more income tax than people elsewhere in the UK. Workers earning £50,000 will have to pay £1,528 more in tax, those earning £75,000 an extra £2,082, and those earning £100,000 will see £3,332 added to tax bills. In his speech to the STUC Congress in Dundee yesterday, Mr Swinney said 'we must ensure we have the highly qualified and skilled workforce needed to make Scotland an attractive place to invest.' That is incompatible with high-tax policies, no matter how much the SNP boasts about how 'progressive' it is to launch raid after raid on our rapidly diminishing bank balances, or ballooning overdrafts. The squeeze on household finances - from rising energy bills to soaring council tax - is pushing many families towards the breadline, or beyond it. According to the Scottish Government, it is estimated that 20 per cent of Scotland's population (1,070,000 people each year) were living in relative poverty after housing costs in 2021-24. A person is in 'relative poverty' if their current household income is less than 60 per cent of the current UK median. We can expect to hear a lot from Mr Swinney about tackling child poverty - but his own government's figures show the number of children in relative poverty after housing costs is 'likely to be somewhere between 180,000 and 300,000 children'. The SNP's flagship Scottish Child Payment (SCP) is fantastically expensive - and woefully ineffectual. It will cost £471million in 2025-26 - but in September last year a damning study found 'no evidence' that the payouts are effective. The Scottish Health Equity Research Unit said that even if the payments were working, Scotland 'would still be a long way from meeting its statutory target of reducing relative child poverty'. More of our taxes are being poured into handouts rather than galvanising the economy, to little effect. Wrong-headed policies and a burgeoning, dysfunctional public sector have swallowed up our extra taxes – and the NHS, which was supposed to benefit most, remains in a state of permanent crisis. Reducing rampant waste and easing the tax burden are the only ways of boosting productivity and bolstering growth, with the proceeds directed towards rescuing failing public services. Businesses have been hit with Labour's hike on employers' contributions on National Insurance – a crippling increase which demonstrates the fiscal illiteracy of a party which pays lip service to defending workers, while destroying their jobs. The SNP's sky-high taxes and business rates are piling more pressure on firms clinging to survival. That means Mr Swinney faces a big test next week – can he swallow his pride and announce the end of the tax disparity with the rest of the UK? He should go much further, with a commitment to cut taxes across the board, but most of us would settle for baby steps. Past record suggests this may be wishful thinking; yet while the SNP is in electioneering mode, only the foolhardy would get their hopes up for a big U-turn on taxes. Yet the case for change is inarguable - it's worth remembering that less than £1 has been spent on public services from every £5 raised by hammering us with higher taxes than the rest of the UK. Scots have paid an extra £3.4billion of income tax since the SNP opened up a tax gap with the rest of the UK in 2017. But it has only generated £629million of extra budget revenue for the Scottish Government due to the impact on the block grant of slower economic growth north of the Border. The reality is that the SNP demanded new powers for Holyrood - and then used them to make Scotland the most heavily taxed part of the UK. It's a move that has hit businesses hard while contributing to moribund growth rates which have been running at roughly half the UK level for the past decade. A government which drove the economy into the doldrums is now telling us that we should trust it to turn it around. This is a fag-end administration which long ago ran out of ideas and momentum – and is now engaged in a last-ditch bid to regain credibility. Many years have been wasted on botched transgender reforms and the doomed crusade for independence. This is precious time that could have been devoted to driving up growth, creating jobs, and cutting taxes to make Scotland a magnet for investment. Mr Swinney has a chance to start rowing back on his party's high-tax lunacy next week, and he should seize it as any sane leader would – but voters won't be holding their breath. Undoing the economic damage the SNP has inflicted on Scotland will take longer than a year - and the only thing Mr Swinney is likely to 'deliver' before next May is yet more failure.
Daily Record
28-04-2025
- Health
- Daily Record
Swinney: Scots public bodies 'should wait for guidance' before single sex space change
Public bodies should wait for full guidance from the UK's equality watchdog before making changes to policy on single sex spaces, Scotland's First Minister has said. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) issued interim guidance on Friday in the wake of the Supreme Court's ruling that sex in the Equality Act refers to biological sex. The body is expected to provide full guidance in the coming months on the implication of the ruling, but its release on Friday said trans women (biological men) should not be permitted to use women's facilities in areas such as hospitals, shops and restaurants. But speaking at the STUC Congress in Dundee , John Swinney said public bodies should wait until the full guidance is issued by the EHCR before implementing changes. "Public bodies have got to be mindful of the legal framework in which they operate and they've got to take into account the formal guidance that comes from the EHRC , which has been subject to consultation and ministerial approval and that's essentially what we wait for," he said. " I think organisations want to have legal certainty and they can only get legal certainty from the formal guidance that comes from the EHRC." Mr Swinney's comments come as he - along with his predecessor Nicola Sturgeon and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer - was urged to apologise by one of his own MSPs. Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland on Monday morning, Michelle Thomson said: "In reality, let's be clear: Keir Starmer should also be apologising, Nicola Sturgeon should also be apologising because people expect government to make clear policies that can be translated into law, and this has been quite a mess for some time, and has only been cleared up as a result of the ruling by the Supreme Court." Asked to respond to her comments, the First Minister said he had addressed calls for him to apologise last week. The ruling has come in for criticism from some, with Green MSP Maggie Chapman hitting out at the Supreme Court, accusing judges of "bigotry, prejudice and hatred". Ms Chapman faces a vote on Tuesday on Holyrood's Equalities and Human Rights Committee - on which she is the deputy convener - in an effort by the Scottish Tories to oust her. Asked how the three SNP MSPs on the committee will vote on the issue, the First Minister said he was not aware, adding: "It would be wrong for me to intervene in the work of a committee by instructing them to do anything."
The Herald Scotland
28-04-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Festival urged to reconsider inclusion of rap group after ‘dead Tory' comments
A video of the band at a 2023 gig appeared to show one member saying: 'The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP.' Asked about the comments on Monday, following his speech to the STUC Congress in Dundee, John Swinney said: 'I'm not familiar with the band Kneecap, but I've become aware of their comments today. 'I think these comments are completely and utterly unacceptable and if they're performing at Trnsmt, or proposed to be performing at Trnsmt, I think the organisers of Trnsmt have got to consider that issue.' Trnsmt has been contacted for comment. The First Minister's condemnation follows on from that of the Prime Minister and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch. Sir Keir Starmer's official spokesman said he believes the comments were 'completely unacceptable' and 'condemns them in the strongest possible terms'. While Ms Badenoch said it was 'good' the Metropolitan Police are investigating the comments. 'Kneecap's glorification of terrorism and anti-British hatred has no place in our society. 'Now footage shows one of them saying: 'The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP'. 'After the murder of Sir David Amess, this demands prosecution.'
