Julie Bishop has resigned as chancellor of the Australian National University, finance minister Katy Gallagher confirmed this morning, marking another chapter in what can only be described as the university's ongoing soap opera. "I note the resignation of ANU Chancellor Julie Bishop," Gallagher said, in the kind of understated acknowledgment usually reserved for someone who just returned a library book late. "The challenges facing ANU did not arise overnight, and rebuilding trust and confidence across the university community will take time and careful work." That remains the task ahead for the university, because apparently the last three years of redundancies, proposed course closures, and allegations of a toxic work culture weren't quite enough to fix things.
In brighter news for anyone who enjoys counting beans, spending on Research & Development has returned to pre-Covid levels, new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows. Higher education expenditure on R&D was $16.4bn in 2024, up 17% on 2022 levels and representing the highest rate of growth since 2012. Tom Lay, head of business statistics at the ABS, said spending had reached its "highest level since Covid-19 restrictions were lifted in 2022." The lift was largely attributed to a $1bn rise (17%) in labour costs, with more research funding allowing universities to hire more academic staff. Higher education spending as a share of GDP has increased from 0.54% to 0.59% - the first increase since 2018, which is basically a statistical celebration.
NSW Health has said it will not tolerate discrimination, after a Jewish Sydney nurse manager said her colleagues had called her "Zionist scum" and told her to remove posters and ribbons commemorating the hostages of 7 October 2023. The nurse, who remained anonymous, told the royal commission into antisemitism that she and others in the Jewish community felt unsafe as patients in hospitals. A NSW Health spokesperson today didn't directly address the nurse's comments but said the department was "committed to combating antisemitism and hate in all its forms." They added that "any form of discrimination, whether from colleagues, patients, or the public, is unacceptable and will not be tolerated," which is a noble sentiment, though one suspects the nurse would have preferred it be said before the name-calling.
The prime minister was asked about the $10,000 Anika Wells has repaid for incorrect travel claims, and he offered the kind of defense that makes you wonder if the bar for ministerial conduct is now somewhere near the floor. "She has paid back the money," he said, noting there is an independent parliamentary expenses authority in charge. "She referred herself to it which was appropriate and it was appropriate that she paid back the money … in accordance with the rules." Asked if she should resign, he pointed out that Bridget McKenzie "breached a range of flights while campaigning about people not making declarations" and remains a shadow minister. So the logic seems to be: if someone else also messed up and kept their job, everyone's fine. Wells herself said an audit found four mistakes in her claims since Labor’s 2022 election victory, resulting in a repayment of $10,116.11 including a 25% penalty loading. "The publicly available audit found no misconduct or ethical breaches," she said on Friday, which is a bit like saying you only slightly broke the rules, so it's fine.
On the return of 13 women and children linked to IS who arrived back in Australia today, the prime minister said the government will "deal with these issues in an appropriate way" and added that he has sympathy for the children who are "victims of the decisions their parents have made." He emphasized that Australian citizens have entitlements, but that those returning will face the full force of the law. On three women who arrived back after years in Syrian detention camps, he said: "they are in the clink, got arrested and they will be charged today." It's a pragmatic approach, though one imagines the children's first day of school might be a bit awkward.
Finally, the prime minister touted $3.8bn in budget funding towards Melbourne's Suburban Rail Loop, the city's controversial 90km public transport project. "This will flow. You will see that on Tuesday night," he said, addressing reporters in his high-vis vest. "What costs money is not building proper infrastructure. What costs money [is] through urban congestion, through people not having homes to live in close to public transport." He compared Melbourne to Paris, New York, and London, which all have rail networks that don't just go to one central point - a subtle dig at anyone who thought a single train station was enough for a major city.
Julie Bishop’s resignation comes less than a year after the exit of ANU’s vice chancellor, Prof Genevieve Bell, continuing a tumultuous three years for the institution. When Bell resigned in September last year, Bishop vowed to stay on despite pressure from the union, student groups, and independent senator David Pocock. Labor senator Tony Sheldon was among the former foreign minister’s critics, pointing to "sweeping restructures … rising dissatisfaction among students and staff" and a failure to "provide transparency around serious governance concerns." At least 399 redundancies have been taken since the restructure began in 2024. ANU remains under scrutiny, with a review ongoing by the higher education regulator TEQSA into its governance, financial sustainability and institutional culture. Pocock praised staff and students for standing together in the "face of poor leadership and governance," noting that "after an incredibly difficult few years, now is the time to recommit to that mission." Or, as the kids say, it's time to hit refresh on the whole operation.