STATEMENT : the GSA’s detailed response to Culture, Tourism Europe and External Affairs committee report

May 17, 2019
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“On 8 March 2019 the Culture Tourism Europe and External Affairs (CTEEA) committee of the Scottish Parliament released a report following evidence sessions on the Mackintosh Building. This report is part of the public record, and it is therefore important for clarity, both now and for history, that its inaccuracies are fully addressed.

“Following the fire in 2018 we have been self-reflective rigorously examining all aspects of the Mackintosh Restoration Project. The external CTEEA hearings were an important and complementary assessment, and we particularly welcome their consideration of the issues facing custodians of Scotland’s most important historic buildings. The international importance of these issues was highlighted more recently by the fire at Notre Dame cathedral in Paris.
“Throughout the parliamentary process we endeavoured to be open and transparent, and to engage with it as fully as possible not only by providing all the documents requested by the Committee, but also by making available further information to help them with their deliberations. Regrettably, the contractor, Kier Construction Scotland Ltd, (Kier) was less so, which the Committee must have found as frustrating as we did.
“It is therefore particularly disappointing that both the CTEEA process and the report failed to fully interrogate and recognise Kier’s role. In the report it is not clear which party was in control of the site at the times of the specific matters considered by the Committee. This is a vital factor in understanding the context of the 2018 fire, and it should have been clear throughout. 

“For clarity, Kier took control of the site on appointment as Principal Contractor in 2016. From that point onwards, up to and including the night of 15 June 2018, Kier had full responsibility for and were in full control of the site.

“Further, it is somewhat surprising that in the report factual information provided by highly regarded organisations who had an intimate knowledge of the Mackintosh Building should have had qualifications added to their submission, whilst unsubstantiated speculation was accorded the status of fact.

“The response which we have issued today addresses these and other issues to ensure accuracy. We now await the outcome of the official Police Scotland and Scottish Fire and Rescue Service investigations.

“The Glasgow School of Art is in the top ten art and design schools in the world alongside Parsons Design School (New York), MIT and Politecnico di Milano. The Mackintosh Building is core to both our student experience and to Glasgow’s increasing profile as a world-leading creative city. Using the information gathered in the Mackintosh Restoration Project – including the ground-breaking Building Information Model – and working with skilled craftspeople we are committed to bringing back Mackintosh’s masterpiece for our students, for the city and for the world.




For further information contact:
Lesley Booth
07799414474
press@gsa.ac.uk

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