University gets £6m to aid economy

MORE than £5.7 million worth of funding is going to a university in the Highlands to help aid economic recovery in the area.

The University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) will receive £5.6m in European Union structural funds from the Scottish Government to help fund the Investing in Recovery project.

Inverness College, which works in partnership with UHI, will receive £100,000 to meet local demand from young people for college places, while Lews Castle College in Stornoway will get £38,748 to improve skill levels locally.

Youth employment minister Angela Constance said: “Since the establishment of the University of the Highlands and Islands, higher education has become a significant economic driver in the region.

“I am, therefore, very pleased that we have been able to augment UHI’s Investing in Recovery project by providing considerably more than the projected £4.4m which is a significant financial boost to the region and reflects demand for higher education places in the north.”

UHI’s principal and vice-chancellor, James Fraser, added: “Investment in Scotland’s new university will help us have a transformational impact on the development and prospects of the Highlands and Islands, its people and its communities.”