Ulster University announced plans last week for up to 450 voluntary redundancies. The positions at risk total 221 in Belfast, 114 in Coleraine, 108 in Magee, and seven in Jordanstown.

Foyle MLA Sinéad McLaughlin questioned Universities Minister Caoimhe Archibald at Stormont on Tuesday. McLaughlin raised concerns about the 108 jobs at risk in Magee and asked how the Executive supports campus expansion plans.

Archibald confirmed Magee expansion as an Executive priority and Programme for Government commitment. Her department invested £35m in Magee since the 2024 Executive restoration, resulting in a 22 per cent rise in student numbers. The Magee Taskforce works with partners toward a 10,000-student target.

Archibald described her department's finances as challenging. The Executive has warned of unsustainable public finances and called for a stable funding model to support public services, including higher education.

Archibald attributed higher education underfunding to British Government decisions. She urged a united Executive effort to secure improved funding.

On Monday, McLaughlin addressed the redundancies as a Matter of the Day in the Assembly. She stated that Magee expansion to 10,000 students and Derry City and Strabane City Deal goals demand more staff.

DUP MLA Philip Brett, Economy Committee chair, said students face service reductions across campuses. He cited Department for the Economy Permanent Secretary Ian Snowden, who told the committee last month that £40m recurrent funding is required for 10,000 Magee students and additional Coleraine undergraduates from 2032.

Sinn Féin MLA Pádraig Delargy called for a higher education funding review. DUP MLA Maurice Bradley noted Ulster University's projected £20.2m operating deficit in 2025 and lack of inflationary increases in teaching grants for nearly two decades.