Strike at uni over threat to axe staff (Islington Gazette)

A UNIVERISTY was brought to a standstill on Tuesday as staff went on strike in an ongoing battle to save more than 500 jobs.

London Metropolitan University (LMU), which has a campus in Holloway Road, Holloway, has been hit with repayment demands totalling more than £36million by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) after the university inaccurately reported the number of students taking courses.

Mark Campbell, who works in the computing facility of the Holloway Road campus, said: "They want to cut 550 full-time posts or the equivalent which could actually be up to 800 jobs cut in the next year. That's more than a quarter of the university staff. It will be the students who ultimately suffer. We want a full independent inquiry into how we got into this mess."

A delegation also handed over a petition with more than 3,500 signatures to the Department of Business, Innovation & Skills demanding the public inquiry and a halt to the job cuts.

Sally Hunt, general secretary of the University and College Union, said: "The situation at London Met is a nightmare and members don't want be taking industrial action, however, it is not acceptable for management to punish the staff for their mistakes."

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