: : To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to the outcome of the University of Aberdeen UCU ballot, which resulted in 83 per cent of those voting in support of strike action and 90 per cent in favour of action short of a strike. (S6F-04709)

: : Although ministers cannot intervene directly, I encourage the University and College Union and the University of Aberdeen to work constructively to seek a resolution to the dispute. I am keen that all parties work together to minimise the risk of disruption for students.

My clear expectation is that staff and trade unions are consulted meaningfully on the potential impact of any measures that would have an effect on the university’s workforce, in line with the fair work principles that are taken forward by the Government.

: : Just two years after strike action was averted, thanks to trade union negotiation, UCU members at the University of Aberdeen have voted overwhelmingly in support of industrial action. They voted in defence of their jobs, their workplace and their students’ learning conditions, because, over the past two years, more than 440 jobs at the university have been lost.

Elsewhere, the University of Dundee has seen more than 500 job losses since July 2024. Strike ballots have been held at Heriot-Watt University, the University of Strathclyde and the University of Stirling, and a new ballot opened today in Edinburgh. UCU members are having to fight the same battle, again and again, up and down the country.

I am pleased to hear the First Minister urging university principals across the country to meet campus unions. They must listen to their workforce, but what is his Government doing to address the financial crisis in our higher education sector?

: : I reiterate the points that I made earlier to Mercedes Villalba. I want to make sure that there is good dialogue between the university leadership and the trade unions to resolve these issues.

On the financing of universities, the Government has increased the resources that are available to the university sector through the Scottish budget. We have also increased the budget that is available for colleges.

I welcome the launch of the framework for sustainability and success of Scottish universities, which will explore options for securing a successful and sustainable future for the world-leading university sector that we benefit from in Scotland. The Government is fully engaged in that activity.

: : I share the First Minister’s keenness for all parties to get round the table to resolve the dispute, so that the impact on students in Aberdeen is minimised.

Universities received a record sum of funding from the Scottish Government in the budget yesterday—a budget that, of course, Labour did not vote for—and students in Scotland receive a much more comprehensive package of support, including paying no tuition fees, than students in England do.

Can the First Minister confirm that the University of Aberdeen should be supporting students? Can he further set out how students in Scotland are benefiting under the Scottish National Party?

: : Please answer on the points that relate to the original question, First Minister.

: : As I indicated in my answers to Mercedes Villalba, I encourage dialogue to resolve this dispute. The budget demonstrates that the Scottish Government remains firmly committed to the principle that access to higher education should be based on the ability to learn and not the ability to pay.

The Government’s commitment to free tuition ensures that Scottish students studying in Scotland do not accrue the additional tuition fee debt of potentially more than £28,000 over three years that is owed by their peers in other parts of the United Kingdom. Any of us observing the debate in the rest of the United Kingdom can see the punishing burden of tuition fee debt that has been carried by individuals in our society. I am glad that the leadership and commitment of the SNP Scottish Government have ensured that students in Scotland are not carrying that burden.

: : We move to Constituency and general supplementary questions.