Holyrood rejects inquiry into Glasgow School of Art fires 

The Scottish government will not support calls for a public inquiry into two fires that caused extensive damage to Glasgow School of Art (GSA) because the required resources would be “extensive” and “difficult to justify”.

The Grade A-listed Charles Rennie Mackintosh building was extensively damaged in a blaze on 23 May 2014. Following a £35m restoration project that was close to completion, the school suffered a second, even more destructive fire four years later on 18 June 2018. 

A report by fire investigators in 2022 said the cause of the second fire was undetermined. The Scottish parliament’s Culture Committee had recommended a public inquiry with judicial powers to examine the risks posed by fire in historic buildings.

Addressing the committee last week, Culture Secretary Angus Robertson said a review had been considered but the government did not support the recommendation in part because most Grade A-listed buildings – including GSA – are privately owned.

Robertson said neither the Scottish government nor Historic Environment Scotland had the "necessary frameworks or regulations currently in place to implement such a comprehensive review".

In a letter to MSPs, Robertson said that the "resources required, not just financially but in terms of expertise and personnel, would be extensive".

"Given the current financial landscape, it is difficult to identify a way that this could be funded, or justified, given the protections already given to historic buildings in fire safety and construction legislation, and the progress already made since the 2018 fire."