Motion: James Watt College

James Watt College

Lodged by Campbell Martin Standard Motion 18 supporters

The motion

That the Parliament is very concerned about the current situation at James Watt College, where debts are reported to be around £6 million and the threat of redundancy hangs over many valuable members of staff; considers that the current situation is a result of decisions taken by the former college principal, Mr Bill Wardle, and the board of management; believes, therefore, that a payment of around £130,000 to Mr Wardle is inappropriate and can only be seen as a reward for failure; further considers that current proposals to address the problems at the college, including reducing teaching staff costs, would equate to staff being punished for the failure of management; recognises that such proposals would ultimately lead to redundancies, an increased workload for the staff that remain and a diminution of the quality of education provided to students, and therefore calls on the Scottish Executive to ensure that sufficient funding and support is provided to James Watt College to ensure that there are no compulsory redundancies among staff and that students are not adversely affected by the failures visited on the college by the former principal and the board of management.

Supporters (18)