THE Glasgow School of Art has been warned against adopting a “culture of secrecy” in the wake of the fire that destroyed the iconic Mackintosh building.

Tom Inns, the director of the GSA, emailed staff on the day after the blaze started to insist that nobody should speak to the media.

However, Labour MP Paul Sweeney said: “The full circumstances of this disaster must be honestly assessed and understood so that we can put in place measures that minimise the risks of it happening to other buildings. A culture of secrecy and control would militate against that and is never healthy.”

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is investigating the cause of an inferno that turned one of the city’s most cherished buildings into a burned out shell.

It was the second major fire at “the Mack” in four years and the progress made in restoring the masterpiece has been wiped out.

The Sunday Herald is aware of staff members who are keen to speak to the media about the GSA, but are afraid of the institution’s reaction if they contact journalists.

On June 16, Inns sent an email to staff: “Can I please remind you that no member of staff should speak to the press / media. Any enquiries should be directed to [our] Press Officer.

“Your co-operation on this is very much appreciated. Further information on the situation will be issued to staff in due course.”

Insiders fear the instruction will ensure that genuine concerns are kept in-house, where they can be managed by bosses at the school.

Eileen Reid, the school's former head of widening participation, last week criticised the GSA on a number of fronts: "The Mackintosh building was built for painting and sculpture. Its wooden interior – soaked in linseed oil and turps for 100 years – had survived cigarettes, the second world war, and even toasters. What it was unable to withstand was not only fire, but hubris, flammable aerosol cans, and, with tragic irony, restoration," she wrote.

Roger Billcliffe, an expert on Charles Rennie Mackintosh who has raised questions about the first fire, said of the Inns email: "This kind of blanket ban may have good purpose in protecting sensitive personal data or commercially sensitive matters, but it is also the route followed by companies and institutions with something to hide."

A spokeswoman for the GSA said: “The GSA has always encouraged staff to direct any media enquiries, regardless of what they are about, through the Communications Team and this standard procedure was being reiterated.”

She added that this procedure should not be confused with the GSA’s position on staff being able to make public interest disclosures.