John McAslan

John McAslan, whose firm is heading up the £68 million restoration of the Burrell Collection in Pollok Park, has endorsed GSA director and chief executive Penny Macbeth’s proposals to bring the restored building into the 21st century, The Times reports.

However, he said the publication of the official report into the 2018 fire which ravaged the building would likely delay the completion of any refurbishment by at least a decade and incur costs of £100 million.

Mr McAslan is a founding member of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society and oversaw the refurbishment of 78 Derngate in Northampton, which was designed by Mackintosh.

He said: “At Derngate the decision was taken to faithfully restore the principal rooms — in particular the hall, the main bedroom, the staircase — within the restored envelope including the rear elevation.

“There was no place for intervention except for very cleverly conceived doors and [innovations such as] disabled lift access from the adjoining property into those rooms by secret panels and things.

“If [the Mack] is done properly it has to serve a function for the art school and has to suppress all of those systems, fire safety systems, digital systems and everything required to allow the school to do everything it needs to do and more. It needs infrastructure for now and the future. That is the great opportunity here.”