Part of 2. 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:54 pm on 4 April 2017.
I’ve not seen any explanations for these changes at this moment in time. I am aware of the situation, however, at those institutions. We expect there to be a period of consultation and that staff and unions are kept informed at all stages in the process. One of the issues that concerns me is that we are seeing a drop in applications, particularly from students from abroad. We know that applications through UCAS to Welsh universities from EU countries, for example, decreased by 8 per cent between 2016 and 2017. The fewer the students there are, the less money there is and the less money there is to pay staff, and that concerns me.