Queen's University criticised for planning Indian campus after job cuts in Belfast

Queen's University Belfast (QUB) has been criticised for its determination to unfastened a field successful India, aft it announced 270 occupation cuts successful Northern Ireland done a voluntary redundancy scheme.

The University and College Union (UCU), which represents galore of QUB's teaching staff, described the determination arsenic "scandalous".

It said QUB receives "significant funding" from Stormont and accused the assemblage of utilizing nationalist wealth to money redundancies successful Belfast portion expanding abroad.

However Queen's said it was facing a fiscal shortage amid a "sharp decline" successful planetary students and truthful it had to instrumentality a fig of actions to chopped its costs. It added the redundancy strategy was wholly voluntary.

The 270 redundancies astatine its Belfast field were announced successful October.

It equates to much than 5% of the university's workforce.

At the time, BBC News NI saw documents which suggested QUB was facing a shortage of much than £11m for the fiscal twelvemonth 2024-25.

Then past week, the assemblage announced that it plans to unfastened a field successful Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) successful India adjacent year.

It said the determination would "reinforce partnerships and opportunities for innovation with section industry, authorities and concern sectors crossed India and Northern Ireland".

Initially, the caller field volition connection 5 postgraduate programmes which QUB said would beryllium "tailored to the circumstantial needs of the Indian economy".

However, the UCU said Queen's receives backing from Stormont's Department for the Economy.

The national accused the assemblage of "directing payer wealth into axing jobs successful Northern Ireland portion creating them connected overseas shores".

"It is scandalous that QUB is putting monolithic amounts of wealth into a caller field halfway circular the satellite each the portion axing jobs successful Belfast," said UCU wide caput Jo Grady.

The national has described the planned redundancies arsenic "brutal and unnecessary" and said it was "deeply concerned" astir the workloads faced by the remaining staff.

It claimed the severance process "requires applicants to outline however their duties volition beryllium redistributed among remaining colleagues oregon different suppressed".

Katharine Clarke, from the UCU, said Queen's was "prioritising enlargement overseas alternatively than safeguarding jobs successful Belfast".

In its statement, QUB said it was reacting to the fiscal challenges "being faced close crossed the UK higher acquisition sector".

It explained that Northern Ireland universities "face an further challenge" due to the fact that of a headdress connected the fig of "home students" it tin admit.

QUB added that the income it received for teaching location students "does not screen the full outgo of teaching", leaving it with a deficit.

In erstwhile years, QUB balanced its books done the fees charges to planetary students, but determination is present a "sharp decline" successful those students coming to the UK.

Its interim vice-president Alistair Finlay said QUB had to beryllium proactive to guarantee it "operates successful an effective, businesslike and financially sustainable way".

He said the redundancy strategy was designed to "provide an accidental for eligible colleagues who whitethorn privation to research caller paths".

"Staff tin take to use oregon not, without immoderate unit oregon obligation," helium added.

The UCU said it had called and exigency wide gathering connected Thursday truthful its members tin sermon the issue.