Freedom, not more red tape, will save universities

Senator Tony Sheldon, Chair of the Senate’s Education and Employment Committee, is seeking an inquiry into what he ominously calls a “spate” of governance issues at universities.

His checklist is a mix of familiar grievances and new headline fodder: “wage theft” from casual workers, a pathetic reaction to campus antisemitism, extravagant spending on consultants, and concern over the composition, transparency, and accountability of university governing bodies.

Vice chancellors’ pay, often topping a million dollars, will also be scrutinised, along with the money they spend decorating their offices or throwing “parties.”

All this unfolds against a backdrop of mounting challenges. Universities, once darlings of public trust, are now seeking community support while trying to fend off government restrictions on their lucrative international student markets.

Domestic student enrolments are dropping, public confidence is eroding, and the sector is drowning in compliance burdens.

The government’s response? More oversight, more watchdogs, more red tape. This is the Australian way, after all: if a problem exists, create a committee; if it persists, establish an agency; and if it thrives, bury it under so much red tape that no one can tell where the problem ends, and bureaucracy begins.

It’s not as if problems don’t exist. Casual workers were underpaid — although it was more likely a result of clunky payroll systems than sinister wage theft. Vice chancellors are paid handsomely, and a few may have made questionable choices about office décor.

But the solution to these problems isn’t to create endless agencies or commissions. What universities need isn’t more bureaucracy; they need better internal governance.

Instead of representatives of interest groups (the current model), university governing bodies (councils or senates) should be composed of talented people who are properly prepared for their roles and who represent a wide array of perspectives.

An informed Council is a university’s best defence against ‘groupthink’ — the bureaucratic echo chamber where bad decisions are made quietly, by consensus.

But governance goes beyond good intentions and well-rounded resumes. University councils also need independence.

Right now, they rely on university bureaucrats to feed them information — often carefully sanitised to avoid ruffling feathers.

Councils must have dedicated staff who report directly to them, ensuring they are fully informed about all issues. Without an unbiased source of information, Councils risk becoming rubber-stamping bodies, nodding along to whatever the university administration presents.

The government’s obsession with central control only makes things worse. In addition to the elephantine Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency, the Tertiary Education Commission is being exhumed after being buried for 40 years.

This body (pun intended) is supposed to bring order to the sector, but in practice, it will lead to more uniformity, less flexibility, and a sprawling bureaucracy of its own.

Add the newly announced student complaints agency, which is tailor-made to encourage grievances, and it’s hard to see how universities will have time for anything other than filling out forms.

Even the government’s newly appointed advisory body on vice chancellors’ pay misses the mark. Yes, some salaries are eye-watering, but the solution isn’t another layer of oversight — it’s helping universities fix themselves.

Councils must be empowered to govern effectively, with the training needed to steer institutions through turbulent times. A one-size-fits-all approach will only lead to mediocrity.

Friedrich Hayek famously warned against the “fatal conceit” of central planning — the idea that bureaucrats can manage complex systems better than the people directly involved.

Universities are prime examples of this principle. They thrive on competition, innovation, and autonomy. Centralisation stifles all three.

Universities don’t need more watchdogs, agencies, or commissions. They need councils that are strong, informed, and capable of making tough decisions.

They need the freedom to compete and innovate, and, above all, universities need to stop being treated like wayward children in need of constant supervision.

The best way to govern a university is to let it govern itself and insist it does so properly. Educate council members, give them the support they require, hold them publicly accountable for outcomes and sack them and their vice chancellors when they fail.

It’s not a flashy strategy, and it won’t win headlines, but it might just save our universities from drowning in red tape.

Universities are Australia’s engines of innovation and social mobility. But they can’t thrive if they’re suffocated by bureaucracy or stripped of autonomy.

The government’s obsession with control will produce universities that are obedient but uninspired, compliant but uncompetitive. It’s time to stop managing universities into mediocrity and start encouraging them to excel.

Freedom, not red tape, is what will save them.

Steven Schwartz is is a Senior Fellow of the Centre for Independent Studies and the former vice chancellor of Macquarie, Murdoch and Brunel Universities.

Photo by Eduardo Romero