Students set to rally outside Scottish Parliament against devastating education cuts

Student leaders will be joined by activists, trade unionists, and politicians in demanding the Scottish Government stop the cuts to universities and colleges

Next week NUS Scotland is set to hold the ‘Rally for Our Education’ outside the Scottish Parliament.

Alongside student activists, trade unions, and politicians, the rally will demand that the Scottish Government stop the planned cuts to higher and further education in the coming budget.

When it should be investing in students’ and young people’s futures, the Scottish Government is imposing cash terms cuts to the resource budgets of universities and colleges to the tune of over £100 million. Students and the wider sector say this will be extremely damaging to students, to staff, and to our colleges and universities – whose funding has not kept up with inflation for years.

Earlier this month, NUS Scotland released the Broke Students, Broken System report which sets out how students in Scotland are being failed by a dysfunctional and underfunded tertiary education system. The Scottish Government’s short-sighted cuts can only make this worse.

The rally will be held outside the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday 21 February at 1pm, and include leading trade union figures from UCU Scotland, EIS-FELA and the STUC, as well as the NUS Scotland President Ellie Gomersall, student leaders and politicians.

Commenting, NUS Scotland President Ellie Gomersall said:

“Education is the best route to alleviate poverty and reduce inequality in Scotland, but despite those being the Scottish Government’s stated priorities, they are choosing to impose devastating cuts of over £100million.

Instead of investing in our future, they are throwing it away.

NUS Scotland is clear that these cuts cannot be allowed to go ahead, they are bad for students, they are bad for staff, and they are bad for Scotland.

Next Wednesday, students and staff will be standing together in solidarity on the Scottish Government’s doorstep and our message to them will be clear: they must stop the cuts.”