Former Dundee University principal apologises to staff and students

BBC News

26-06-2025

Update:
Date: 08:44 BST
Title: What did the report say?
Content: The independent report, external found the main causes for the deficit included poor financial judgement from university bosses and weak governance from the university court, which is meant to hold senior management to account.
It found that almost £40m of ringfenced money had been spent elsewhere and there had been "a lack of real action" to address an £8m "hole" due to a fall in international student recruitment.
The report said that those in charge of the university's governance should have known well before November last year that there was a problem.
In the wake of the report's publication, the principal Prof Shane O'Neill resigned.
He was identified in the report along with former principal Prof Iain Gillespie, the chief operating officer and the director of finance as one of the university leaders who "did not cultivate a culture of openness and challenge at all levels".
Tricia Bey, acting chair of the university court, and Carla Rossini, convenor of the finance & policy committee, also left the university with immediate effect.
Update:
Date: 08:40 BST
Title: Gilliespie insists he was a 'champion of the university'
Content: Gilliespie says the Gillies Report was a "forensic piece of work", but he "does not recognise" the description of his management style.
He says he was "always a champion of Dundee University"
Update:
Date: 08:38 BST
Title: Staff and students 'deserved better'
Content: Committee chairman Douglas Ross opens the questioning of Prof Gillespie by saying the Gillies Report into the the running of the university was "damning and particularly scathing" about the former principal.
Gillespie says students and staff deserved better from their university, and he says he offers a "heart-felt apology".
Update:
Date: 08:34 BST
Title: How did we get here?
Content: In November, at a time when many Scottish universities were experiencing budget woes, Dundee University told staff that job cuts were "inevitable" as it faced a "significant deficit".
The university's then principal Prof Iain Gillespie quit less than two weeks later and it emerged that the university had a £35m blackhole.
Staff were informed of plans to cut 632 posts - about 20% of the workforce - by then interim principal Prof Shane O'Neill at a meeting in March.
Union members voted in favour of three weeks of strike action in the face of potential compulsory redundancies.
The cuts were later scaled back to about 300 voluntary redundancies.
The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) approved a £22m support package in April and a further £40m was confirmed this week.
And last week Prof O'Neill and two senior members of the university's governing body quit after a damning report revealed it's financial woes were "self-inflicted".
Update:
Date: 08:32 BST
Title: Prof Gillespie apologises to Dundee uni staff and students
Content: The evidence session is under way, and Prof Gillespie opens by apologising to University of Dundee staff and students.
Update:
Date: 08:30 BST
Title: Welcome
Content: Prof Iain Gillespie resigned as Dundee University principal in December last year
Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of Holyrood's education committee as it continues its inquiry into the financial mismanagement of the University of Dundee.
The university currently faces a £35m deficit and has said it must cut 300 jobs through a voluntary redundancy scheme.
An independent report,, external published last week, said university bosses and its governing body failed multiple times to identify the worsening crisis and continued to overspend instead of taking action.
This morning's evidence session is with Prof Iain Gillespie, the former principal and vice-chancellor of the university.
Prof Gillespie resigned with immediate effect in December after telling staff the previous month that job losses were "inevitable".
The evidence session begins at 08:30 and we'll bring you reports and analysis throughout. You can watch the committee live by clicking on the Watch Live icon at the top of the page.