Latest news with #IainGillespie
Daily Mail
02-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Finance chief at cash crisis Scots university quits after just eight days in the job
A cash-strapped university has been plunged into further turmoil after its chief finance officer left just days into his new job. Staff at the University of Dundee were yesterday told Chris Reilly had left the position by 'mutual agreement' just eight days after starting the job. Mr Reilly, who the university said had a 'wealth of experience', only joined the beleaguered university last Monday. It is the latest issue to rock the university, which is slashing its headcount amid a £35 million deficit, and comes just days after its former principal Prof Iain Gillespie said he was 'incompetent' and not corrupt. Mr Reilly was appointed to be its interim chief financial officer for 18 months, but yesterday staff were told of his departure. In a campus-wide email Prof Nigel Seaton, the current interim principal and vice chancellor, revealed Mr Reilly has 'left the university by mutual agreement'. Prof Seaton, who took over last month after Prof Shane O'Neill quit as principal following a scathing independent report into the cash crisis, said: 'We are moving quickly to appoint a new interim director of finance who will take us through the next steps of the university recovery plan for submission to the Scottish Funding Council.' Mr Reilly joined the university on June 23, and the institution said he brought a 'wealth of experience' across a range of sectors including 'higher education, charities, healthcare and multisite retailing and catering, with substantial governance experience'. Informing staff of his appointment, as part of its financial recovery plan, the university said: 'Chris is initially being appointed for an eighteen-month period. 'This is a vital appointment as we move through the next stages of our financial recovery.' University bosses are now on the hunt for their fourth finance chief in less than a year. Mr Reilly replaced Helen Simpson, who served in the role for seven months before her own exit. Before then, in early October 2024, Peter Fotheringham left. The university, which has secured a £62m taxpayer bailout, is seeking to cut as many as 300 jobs to cope with its multi-million pound deficit. In an excruciating Holyrood appearance last week former principal Prof Gillespie, who was paid £305,000 a year before he quit in December, denied being a liar, a coward, and a 'good time Charlie' but did admit he was 'incompetent'. When the university was hit with a scathing report by Prof Pamela Gillies last month, Prof O'Neill and two senior members of the university's governing body immediately quit. It found that poor financial management and bad decisions were behind a 'self-inflected' black hole, with red flags clearly visible on Prof Gillespie's watch. She found there were numerous points in which a 'reasonable person' could have realised the financial situation was worse than presented.
Scotsman
29-06-2025
- Politics
- Scotsman
Exposing disgraced ex-Dundee University principal was a masterclass in how good Scotland's politicians can be
Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... In a world where people in power often do not get their comeuppance, it is very satisfying to see them getting the public dressing down they deserve. That is what happened when the disgraced former principal of Dundee University, Professor Iain Gillespie, was hauled before Parliament this week. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad During a gruelling three-hour evidence session on Thursday, he admitted he was 'incompetent', had 'very poor knowledge' of the university's finances, and did not realise how out of their depth his top management team was. Professor Iain Gillespie, former principal and vice-chancellor of Dundee University, at Holyrood's education committee. | Andrew Cowan/Scottish Parliament This was all only possible because the MSPs on Holyrood's education committee were on top form. Convener Douglas Ross, in particular, brought his A game with his brutally effective scrutiny. So effective was the line of questioning, the committee got Prof Gillespie to admit he was ill-prepared for the meeting, had not read the evidence he probably should have, and did not know about major financial breaches at the institution he was in charge of until they were exposed in a report published only a week ago. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Pretty much since the dawn of devolution there have been parts of political society who have criticised Holyrood for not being as good at debate and holding those in power to account as at Westminster. But Thursday's education committee was a masterclass in just how good the people Scotland has elected to speak on their behalf can actually be. Part of the reason they were brutally effective is because they put party differences aside and worked together. This was the vision John Swinney said he wanted when he became First Minister, but only a year later it is clear from watching debates that ship has long since sailed. If you want a particularly good example, look no further than the unlikely double act of Conservative Mr Ross and Lib Dem Willie Rennie. Between the two of them, they managed to expose historic complaints against Prof Gillespie's professional conduct. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Douglas Ross MSP and Willie Rennie MSP | Press Association He initially said he could not remember this happening, but Mr Ross and Mr Rennie were having none of it. It only took the pair a few minutes to expose the ex-principal's attempt at retrograde amnesia. Mr Rennie asked the ex-principal if he had ever been complained about before and he said he did not remember. Only a few minutes later Mr Ross asked again and the professor admitted he had received a complaint about his 'overbearing behaviour" a decade ago. The MSPs said it illustrated his character that he had tried to hide this from Parliament. Several MSPs on the committee also banded together to wear Prof Gillespie down on handing back his £150,000 pay-out. Outside the committee room, the SNP First Minister said handing back the payment would be the 'reasonable' thing to do. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The committee might not have succeeded in getting him to agree to this, but Prof Gillespie went from initially saying the payment was a 'contractual obligation' he was owed to conceding he would 'reflect' on the payment with his family. Now £150,000 is a drop in the ocean when considering the university's £35 million deficit and will not stop hundreds of staff members losing their jobs. But handing it back does send a message of contrition and humility that would go a long way to repairing the broken bonds and lack of trust in the city. There are many details we still do not know about what went wrong and when at Dundee, and at this point there is a chance we never will.
Scotsman
27-06-2025
- Business
- Scotsman
Why John Swinney should beware calling for price to be paid for 'incompetence'
Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... On being asked if he was incompetent or corrupt at a Scottish Parliament education committee hearing, Professor Iain Gillespie – accused of almost destroying Dundee University during his time as principal – at least did not dodge the question. 'Certainly not corrupt, so I would have to choose incompetent,' he said, with a candour, or perhaps a flippancy, that may have surprised some politicians. The academic, who resigned in December, has been widely pilloried for his role in the university's financial crisis, which has prompted plans for hundreds of job cuts and Scottish Government bailouts so far totalling £62 million. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Given the situation, John Swinney and MSPs from other parties have suggested that Gillespie should hand back a £150,000 payment he received on his resignation. Asked if he would do so, he told MSPs the money was a 'contractual obligation' although he eventually agreed to 'reflect' on the idea with his family. Scottish Government ministers are unlikely to pay a financial price for their failings, but they could pay a political one (Picture: Jane Barlow) | PA Public money squandered However, the First Minister, in particular, should have a care. After all, the Scottish Government is facing the prospect of its own yawning funding gap of an estimated £5 billion, which could grow to nearly £6bn. And the Scottish Government has warned the situation appears to be so dire that it may have to cut more than 12,000 public sector jobs in the coming years. The parallels with the situation at Dundee University are hard to ignore. If the SNP ministers had not squandered so much public money on pointless independence papers, botched legislation like the calamitous deposit return scheme – which may end up costing far more as private companies seek compensation – and the construction of two over-budget, long-delayed ferries, the government's financial position would have been in a far better state. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad So it would be understandable if taxpayers look at the pressure being put on Gillespie to pay a price for his failings and start to think about whether ministers should offer to do something similar.
Times
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Times
Ex-Dundee University chief feels the pain of Holyrood mauling
Y ou watch mesmerised, but also a little nauseous, when a Holyrood committee lays into one of its victims. It's like seeing a ring of jackals circling a wounded gazelle. One after the other they lunge in and snap at the wretched creature. You know it doesn't stand a chance, but it's hard to take your eyes off its death throes. Thus it was that Professor Iain Gillespie, former principal of Dundee University, whose leadership, or lack of it, exposed that institution to a £35 million debt, the loss of 300 jobs, and even possible closure, faced Holyrood's education committee. His attackers brushed off the 'heartfelt apologies' he offered for what had happened, and gathered for the attack. Jackal-in-chief Douglas Ross, the committee convener, listed Gillespie's failings: 'hubris … overbearing behaviour … dangerous over-confidence … arrogance'. These, he said, were only some of the conclusions of Professor Pamela Gillies, whose independent report revealed a catalogue of failures.
Leader Live
26-06-2025
- Business
- Leader Live
Ex-Dundee University principal says returning £150,000 ‘not in thought process'
Professor Iain Gillespie insisted it was 'not in my thought process' to hand back the cash. He stepped down from his post at the university – which is looking to cut hundreds of posts as it tries to deal with a £35 million deficit – in December. Holyrood's Education Committee is examining how the problems at the university arose, with convener Douglas Ross branding Prof Gillespie a 'coward' and accusing him of having 'created this mess and walked away into the sunset'. His comments came after Prof Gillespie offered a 'heartfelt apology' to staff and students at Dundee – which is to receive an additional £40 million from the Scottish Government to help its financial situation. Appearing before the committee on Thursday, he said: 'Let me start off with an apology to the staff and students. 'I think staff and students deserve better than they have had with the management and the governance of the University of Dundee over quite some time, but particularly over the period of 2024. 'It's a heartfelt apology for a university that I love, and a city that I hugely respect. 'I accept the buck stops with me. That is why at the end of last year I left.' Prof Gillespie faced MSPs after being heavily criticised in a report last week into the university's financial difficulties by former Glasgow Caledonian University principal Professor Pamela Gillies. Mr Ross said the report showed Prof Gillespie as having 'dangerous over self-confidence and complacency, often in combination or arrogance' and an 'overbearing leadership style'. Prof Gillespie accepted the report was a 'forensic piece of work' that showed the 'challenges' Dundee was dealing with, but he added: 'As far as the way it has presented me and my management style, that is not something I recognise.' But he later told the committee a complaint had been made against him in a previous job at the Natural Environment Research Council. Prof Gillespie said one worker 'did make a complaint against me, that was about overbearing behaviour', adding this person had 'moved on to another job'. He stepped down as principal at the University of Dundee in December, recalling how this happened after others at the institution told him they had 'no confidence' in his leadership. Prof Gillespie said it is 'possible' he had then resigned by text – though he said he may instead have sent an email confirming his decision. Mr Ross told him: 'The only thing I thought about you was you are a coward. 'You couldn't go back to the university and face the staff who were losing their jobs, face the students whose studies were so badly disrupted. 'You just created this mess and walked away into the sunset.' As part of our scrutiny of the University of Dundee we're currently taking evidence from Professor Iain Gillespie the former Principal and Vice-Chancellor. Watch live: — Education, Children and Young People Committee (@SP_ECYP) June 26, 2025 Asked about the payoff he received, Prof Gillespie said it is a 'matter of public record' that his contract set out he should receive six months' basic salary on his resignation. Mr Ross told him he had received 'over £150,000 to walk away from a university you almost destroyed'. He asked the former principal: 'At any point have you considered paying that money back?' Prof Gillespie said the university had a 'contractual obligation' to pay him the money, adding it was 'not in my thought process to repay a contractual obligation to me for my work at the university'. While he said he took 'overall management responsibility for what happened at the University of Dundee', he told Mr Ross he would 'push back' against the claim that he 'almost destroyed it'. Liberal Democrat MSP Willie Rennie also pushed for Prof Gillespie to give back the money. He told the former principal: 'To hold on to that just seems astonishing with the pain other people are feeling. 'I just genuinely want you to think about that, because I think it would send an important message. 'It wouldn't repair the damage but it would send an important message.' Joe Fitzpatrick, the SNP MSP for Dundee City West, told Prof Gillespie: 'You did apologise and you told us it was heartfelt, but I am still not sure it cuts it for the staff and students who will be watching.' Prof Gillespie also hit back at claims from former Holyrood minister Wendy Alexander, who was vice-principal international at the university for almost a decade. In a submission to the committee, Baroness Alexander had said she was 'frozen out' and then 'asked to leave' her post after raising concerns about university finances. Prof Gillespie insisted he did 'not want to get into a slagging match about people's characters', he told MSPs: 'Wendy's performance in terms of delivering student numbers wasn't what we needed it to be.'
