31 August 2023
Parliamentary Research Brief – The Free Speech Crisis In Australian Universities And How To Solve It
University hostility to freedom of speech has more than doubled since 2016 In 2016, 67% of Australian universities enforced policies that were explicitly hostile to free speech. In 2023, that number has increased to 90%. Hostility to free speech on campus can be measured by the number and severity of conduct polices enforced by universities. The combined hostility score across
28 October 2020
Law To Protect Academic Freedom Will Prevent Another Peter Ridd Case
Free market think tank the Institute of Public Affairs has welcomed the introduction of the Higher Education Support Amendment (Freedom of Speech) Bill 2020 into the House of Representatives, which introduces a definition of academic freedom into legislation in line with the recommendations by former High Court Chief Justice the Hon Robert French AC. “The Federal Court decision upholding the
31 August 2019
Unis Have Lost Their Way As Homes For Free Speech
In 2016, the Collins English Dictionary ranked “snowflake generation” as one of those annoying new phrases for the year. It is time to bury it. It’s a beat-up and, worse, it is an unfair slur on the current generation of students. That is the good news from a forthcoming research report by the Institute of Public Affairs into the state
9 August 2019
How Chinese Investment Is Challenging Our Academic Freedom
Recent scenes of chaos at the University of Queensland as pro- and anti-Hong Kong freedom demonstrators squared off on campus, and reports that the Chinese-based families of anti-communist protesters have received visits from Beijing’s security apparatus, are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to infiltration of our universities by the Chinese Communist Party. Even more disturbing is
7 November 2018
UTAS Risk To Freedom Of Expression And Human Rights
The University of Tasmania’s draft behaviour policy is a serious threat to freedom of expression and basic legal rights. The bedrock of university life is the ability to freely explore ideas. It is only through the process of claim and counter-claim that it is possible to separate good ideas from bad and discover the truth. Across the Anglosphere, from American
28 September 2018
Universities Have A Duty To Protect Free Speech
Australia’s universities are public institutions with a corresponding legal responsibility to uphold free expression. This point was made by former High Court chief justice Robert French last week in his Austin Asche oration for Charles Darwin University and the Australian Academy of Law. French outlined the possibility that universities are covered by the constitutional freedom of political communication. “To the
