Brendan Nelson Lends a "Helping Hand" to Julie Bishop and Gets a Public Slap on the Wrist for His Intervention. (September 30, 2006)

    When the former Minister for Education, Science and Training, Brendan Nelson, was moved to Defence to be replaced by Julie Bishop, there was a feeling abroad that in his new portfolio he would probably perpetrate less damage to the nation.

In any case Dr Nelson has now joined the Attorney-General, Philip Ruddock in an apparent attempt to intimidate university academics.

In articles in today's Australian and The Australian Financial Review it is reported that Dr Nelson earlier this month forwarded to Macquarie University's Vice-Chancellor, Steven Schwartz, a letter sent to him by a constituent,  Douglas Brown, enrolled in the Master of Arts subject "Rights and the Evolution of Australian Citizenship". Mr Brown complained of "left-wing" bias in the teaching of the subject.

In his letter to Dr Nelson Mr Brown said half of the reading list should be abandoned in favour of material from conservative sources such as the Quadrant journal; the Centre for Independent Studies and federal government reports and websites. "Because of the lack of articles from a right-wing perspective, the unit guide displays an excessively positive attitude to multiculturalism and an excessively negative attitude to Australia's human rights record."

Although The Australian's Dorothy Illing says a "spokesman for Dr Nelson said yesterday that the Defence Minister was just passing on a complaint from a constituent", a copy of the letter shows that "Dr Nelson has penned a note at the bottom of the letter that says: 'I am very concerned about this and would appreciate your personal attention to these issues which I find disturbing.'"

And according to the AFR's Sophie Morris, "He copied his letter, which is on his electorate letterhead, to Education Minister Julie Bishop."

In an oblique reply Ms Bishop told the media, "It is not feasible for university courses to be designed to match the personal bias of individual students. Students should critically analyse all course content and argue alternate points of view."

Macquarie's vice-chancellor has not commented directly on Dr Nelson's letter but has said, "It's absolutely fundamental ... that we safeguard academic freedom ... if we're going to have a lively and effective university sector and if we're going to have a fair and lively society as well. [There were few instances, if any, where] we would want to stifle an academic's freedom to teach whatever [some group] felt was fair," and  Ms Morris writes "in internal university advice on the case this week, the vice-president of the academic senate, Bruce Kercher, questioned whether the minister was attempting to apply political pressure on the university. 'If so, that is just where academic freedom is so important: universities are not arms of the state, but are independent organisations with their own values,' Professor Kercher [also] points out it is wrong to assume that any criticism of the government is automatically left-wing."

Macquarie University's academic senate has been developing a policy statement which Ms Illing reports was being finalised yesterday. "It says that academics must be able to teach and research without undue interference from government, university administration, the media, private corporations and other organisations."