Part of Portfolio Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at 2:00 pm on 10 October 2024.
I thank the minister, but sustainability is not really going to cut it here, because the Educational Institute of Scotland has voiced its concern over the fall in funding from the Scottish Government for Scottish university students. Funding per student is now 19 per cent lower in real terms than it was a decade ago. Savage funding cuts have caused an overreliance on international students, whose numbers are now at a record high. Although I welcome international students, they should not be used to subsidise our universities because of a lack of funding from this SNP Government. A sudden decrease in their numbers for any reason could bankrupt our universities. Meanwhile, the SNP’s cap on places for home-grown students means that Scottish students are being turned away. I am particularly concerned about medicine.