NTEU demands parliament inquiry into Adelaide, UniSA merger

The Premier admitted he didn’t read the full business case that led him to approve the uni merger deal, but a union says a parliamentary inquiry must scrutinise it.

The contentious business case that Premier Peter Malinauskas relied upon, but had not read in full, when giving the green light to the proposed merger between Adelaide University and UniSA must be scrutinised in full by the parliamentary inquiry into the amalgamation, according to the National Tertiary Education Union

In its submission to the Establishment of Adelaide University inquiry, which will start hearings next month, the NTEU said the merger should not go ahead unless there was “complete transparency and public oversight to protect the public interest’’.

“The Premier may have offered the new university $445.5m taxpayer dollars without reading the full business case, but for the sake of all South Australians — and in good conscience — the SA Parliament surely cannot,’’ the NTEU says in its submission.

Earlier this month, Mr Malinauskas gave the merger the go ahead after the two universities signed a heads of agreement. The Premier said he had made his decision to commit the $445.5 million of taxpayer dollars after reading summaries of the business case provided by the universities.

It is expected the inquiry will ask university vice chancellors Peter Hoj and David Lloyd to provide the full business case when they are called as witnesses. However, it is unlikely they can be compelled to produce the report.

Mr Malinauskas said he had not seen the entire report because they were the “property of the universities’’ and was their “intellectual property’’.

UniSA vice chancellor David Lloyd has previously said parts of the business case were “commercial-in-confidence’’ and would need to remain secret.

Chancellor of the University of SA Pauline Carr, Premier Peter Malinauskas, Chancellor of the University of Adelaide Catherine Branson with Ini SA Vice Chancellor Professor David Lloyd, Treasurer Stephen Mullighan, Deputy Premier Susan Close and UOA Vice Chancellor Professor Peter Hoj. Picture: Emma Brasier

However, the NTEU, which represents employees in the higher education sector, said it was imperative the inquiry examined all the claims of economic and educational benefits that had been made in support of the merger proposal.

The new university is forecast to generate an extra $500m annually for the state economy by 2034, create an extra 1200 jobs and educate more than 70,000 students – about 13,000 more than today’s combined total.

Also by 2034, the universities’ feasibility study forecast it would attract 6000 extra international students, generate an extra $100m in research revenue annually and help an extra 800 low socio-economic people into study.

“Where is the evidence and modelling to support these claims?’’ the NTEU writes in its submission. “When will the cost/benefit analysis be provided to the SA public for scrutiny?’’

In its submission, the NTEU also says the $100 million fund created to attract students from low socio economic backgrounds to the merged institution should be extended to Flinders University.

“Surely making our public universities more accessible and inclusive for students from low socio-economic and diverse cultural backgrounds is something we must strive for across the state, as a matter of social justice, not just as a guiding ambition for the new university,’’ the NTEU says.