Seòmar agus comataidhean

This is about education.

Okay.

Could John McKendrick comment on the impact of the move from full-time to part-time study on widening access? What are your views with regard to Mr Kerr’s question about the cuts impacting disproportionately on the post-1992 universities and widening access? What concerns do you have, and what actions might be taken to address some of those issues?

Welcome back. We are now going to hear evidence from representatives of the Scottish Funding Council—we had a bit of a preview earlier this morning, as they were namechecked a few times. I welcome Karen Watt, the chief executive officer; Richard Maconachie, director of finance; and Lynne Raeside, deputy director of external affairs.

We go straight to members’ questions. I thank the witnesses for their written submission, which we have found particularly helpful in scoping the session. I bring in Liam Kerr to kick off the discussion.

That is okay. I suppose that a mechanism for how the SFC feeds back some of its concerns to the Scottish Government is the committee’s responsibility, and you have got some of those points on the record.

I will hand over to Michelle Thomson.

Perhaps you can provide us with something on RAAC after this session, if we do not get the opportunity to delve into that in more detail.

I would like to pick up some questions about the review of teacher funding that the Scottish Government has recently announced. What information can you give us about that?

I know that you listened to the evidence session with the first panel of witnesses, when we had a lengthy discussion about international student income cross-subsidising, as some might say, home students’ fees. What are your thoughts on that and on how the 2025-26 budget might begin to address that issue, which is clearly so embedded now in Scottish institutions?

Thank you. That shows that the situation is very complex and not as straightforward as some people think that it is.

I am very conscious of the time and am framing everything in that context.

In the past few weeks, we have also heard—it has been widely covered in the press—about some courses being cut based on financial considerations alone. The case that comes to mind is languages in the north-east. Does the SFC recognise those concerns? What support can be offered to institutions that find themselves in that situation?