More than 300 march on WA Parliament against proposed university merger
Students and staff protested a possible merger of UWA, Curtin and Murdoch. The state government says it has made no commitment to proceed.
More than 300 students and staff marched on Western Australia’s Parliament House on 21 October to oppose a proposed merger of the University of Western Australia, Curtin University and Murdoch University, ABC News reported. The state government is examining a combination that would affect three of the state’s four public universities, but says it has made no commitment to proceed.
The government announced a steering committee the previous week to investigate the plan’s merits. A combined institution would have more than 100,000 students, according to ABC News. Curtin and Murdoch criticised the proposal as expensive and wasteful, while UWA vice-chancellor Amit Chakma praised its aspiration to improve the sector.
Students press for housing and teaching investment
Members of the three student guilds addressed the rally. Curtin Student Guild president Dylan Storer said students deserved a say in their universities’ future and urged investment in affordable housing, teaching, facilities and student support. ‘You cannot fix a cost-of-living crisis with a corporate restructure,’ he said, according to ABC News.
Before the march, Storer told 6PR Drive host Jamie Burnett that students raised difficulties paying for housing, staying at university and buying food, rather than asking for the institutions to merge. His comments put immediate student costs at the centre of the opposition to the plan.
Incoming UWA guild councillor Rojin Didari praised French protesters in remarks reported by ABC News. Storer later distanced himself from those comments, saying he disagreed and that most people at the rally would deplore violence.
Business case and parliamentary votes remain ahead
Tertiary Education Minister Tony Buti said he understood students’ concerns but accused guild presidents of selecting which information to give them. He said a merger would proceed only if its business case stacked up. Buti did not address the rally, saying he had been invited only the day before and was introducing changes to discrimination laws in Parliament at the same time.
The proposal also faces a difficult path through Parliament. ABC News reported that the Liberal party room voted on Tuesday to reject it regardless of the business case, and that the Greens oppose it. Labor would need support from at least three crossbench members to pass its bill. Opposition education spokesman Liam Staltari called it ‘the wrong proposal, flat out’. The result of the business case and any parliamentary vote remain unsettled.
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Sources and context
- Hundreds rally at parliament against proposed university mergerABC News Australia
- Proposed university merger sparks student protest at Parliament6PR; article by Jamie Burnett
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.