The Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee released an Interim report on the Quality of governance at Australian higher education providers, 19 September 2025. The report makes 12 recommendations. While all useful, the recommendations are very narrow and modest in scope. Australian universities are key to the economic future and security of Australia, deserving a much more wide reaching investigation by Parliament. Our universities face threats far larger than in the recent past, including from COVID-19.
The recommendations call for universities to publish minutes of council meetings, disclose spending on consultants, publish a conflict-of-interest register and executive annual remuneration reports, and the composition of governing bodies. The Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency's (TEQSA) would then enforce these. None of that seems particularly onerous.
The third recommendation is a bit more vague, with universities to adopt best-practice meaningful consultations. The fourth is for government to set vice-chancellors and senior executive remuneration. This might be challenged by higher education providers which are private institutions and particularly for-profit companies.
Recommendation 5 & 6 are for a set proportion of members with public administration and higher education expertise, as well as staff and students on councils. Recommendation 7 is for universities ensure respectful treatment of staff and students on governing bodies. However the Australian Parliament is hardly in a position to lecture on workplace culture, given its own poor track record.
One reform I suggested, which was for senior university positions, including VCs, to be elected by the student and staff bodies, was not adopted in the report.
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