SINN Fein Foyle Assembly candidates Raymond McCartney and Elisha McCallion have met the management of the University of Ulster.
They said the discussions were focussed both on the opportunities provided by Magee expansion and the potential implications of BREXIT on the research activities of the UU:
“We were delighted to accept Professor Paddy Nixon’s request to meet with himself and senior management to discuss their ongoing work to expand the Magee campus. Our discussions focused on a range of issues including the UU’s plans for the development of a medical school at Magee,” Mr McCartney and Ms McCallion said afterwards.
“We again reiterated Sinn Fein’s commitment to making this happen as the first step in the wider expansion of Magee through an increase in MasN student places and the development of new economically relevant courses to complement existing provision.
“We also expressed delight at the swift progress being made on the new teaching block which will further enhance the infrastructure on the campus.
“Crucially, we discussed the potential implications of BREXIT for the UU and the wider Further and Higher Education sector across the north and negative impact it will have on funding opportunities to finance research and development projects in the aftermath of BREXIT.
“We outlined how our colleague Martina Anderson MEP is working tirelessly to persuade the European Commission and other decision makers in Brussels that Designated Status is the only option for the north once Article 50 is invoked.
“We also discussed how the UU could reinforce this message by conducting their own lobby to demonstrate the importance of EU funding to their research activities and the wider activities of the UU and other educational institutions.
“We look forward to developing this conversation further in the weeks and months ahead to ensure that the Magee’s potential is realised and that opportunities to develop further research programmes which is a crucial area of income and activity for the UU are identified and capitalised on.”
