What's with Basset, Brash & Hide, The Platform, and my mate, Muriel Newman's NZ Centre for Political Research launching nuke attacks on Auckland University? In a particularly unpleasant example, those outlets featured an article saying "Auckland University has a Death Wish: It’s hard to avoid the conclusion that the University of Auckland is suicidal". Many thanks for describing me in that way. Much appreciated.
Actually, this year our students are more motivated than ever. The BCom / Law students I see are a fine bunch. Sharp as a tack. They will do great in their chosen careers. I looked at the latest 2025 QS World University Rankings. Auckland comes in at 65 out of 1,500 institutions. Turns out nearly every one of the places above us are from enormous countries, like the US, UK and now China. There is no other country with a population of around 5 million like NZ that is higher ranked than Auckland in the world. We sometimes compare ourselves to Finland, Sweden and Norway. But Helsinki University comes in at 117, Stockholm Uni at 128 and Oslo Uni 119. Singapore's population is higher than NZ's - at around 6 million - and has the exceptionally highly publicly funded National University of Singapore at number 8. Of course, that should be a model for NZ - invest in one star amazing place - which obviously can only be Auckland.
As for the current attacks on Auckland University, don't National and ACT supporters get it? Don't you get that you voted for all of them? Back in 2009, just after National, ACT, United Future and the Māori Party formed the Coalition government, led by a certain John Key, a banker called Scott St John went onto the University's Council. Then National Party Minister Steven Joyce had a brain wave. He decided a stack of members of University Councils in NZ should be directly appointed by him, being the Minister of (Tertiary) Education. Which in practice meant (being NZ) putting a bunch of hopeless, yet well-connected, lawyers and accountants onto Councils who'd never taught a class in their life. Back when I was a student, John Graham, who I knew, the former All Black & Auckland Grammar Head, was Chancellor & Head of Council. Not any more. His type have now been ruled out.
Anyhow, are you still with me, National and ACT supporters? The National-led government you voted for back in 2008-9 went and stitched up the Councils with its own old-school tie boys and girls. Then in mid-2017, when the Nats were still in power, Scott St John was made Chancellor of Auckland University. Its the Chancellor and Council's job to appoint the Vice Chancellor (essentially the CEO of the place - the Council being more like the Board). So who did National's Council appoint? The present Vice Chancellor - who has brought in many of the changes National supporters are so furious about. But there were no secrets. There were no surprises. They knew who and what they were getting when they hired the VC we have now - National embraced it. It raised my eyebrows at the time and I discussed it beforehand with a former National Party Tertiary Education Minister who couldn't care less. Just like how so many National supporters voted in PM Chris Luxon and now every day of the week complain about the Treaty - you voted for the guy. He wants to throw Seymour's Principles Bill out in the bin - you voted for that to happen. By the way, now Scott St John is Chair of ANZ Bank and flew to India side-by-side with Prime Minister Luxon. Yes, the National Party loves him. He's their, and your, man.
The moral of the story is that most changes we have in NZ that National supporters cry hard about were brought in - by National. Auckland University has been built exactly in the image National wanted. By the way, the place has never interfered with my freedom of speech - my guest speakers have included the likes of Don Brash, Roger Douglas, Ruth Richardson, Bill English, Judith Collins and David Seymour. I've balanced their types with others like David Parker, Chloe Swarbrick, Chris Finlayson, and have met up with Barbara Edmonds. You should be grateful you've got a world top 100 university at your doorstep - a luxury that no other nation with a population our size enjoys. My aim is to see Auckland compete with the likes of the National University of Singapore and be in the world top 10. You should help us get there.
Professor Robert MacCulloch holds the Matthew S. Abel Chair of Macroeconomics at Auckland University. He has previously worked at the Reserve Bank, Oxford University, and the London School of Economics. He runs the blog Down to Earth Kiwi from where this article was sourced.
As for the current attacks on Auckland University, don't National and ACT supporters get it? Don't you get that you voted for all of them? Back in 2009, just after National, ACT, United Future and the Māori Party formed the Coalition government, led by a certain John Key, a banker called Scott St John went onto the University's Council. Then National Party Minister Steven Joyce had a brain wave. He decided a stack of members of University Councils in NZ should be directly appointed by him, being the Minister of (Tertiary) Education. Which in practice meant (being NZ) putting a bunch of hopeless, yet well-connected, lawyers and accountants onto Councils who'd never taught a class in their life. Back when I was a student, John Graham, who I knew, the former All Black & Auckland Grammar Head, was Chancellor & Head of Council. Not any more. His type have now been ruled out.
Anyhow, are you still with me, National and ACT supporters? The National-led government you voted for back in 2008-9 went and stitched up the Councils with its own old-school tie boys and girls. Then in mid-2017, when the Nats were still in power, Scott St John was made Chancellor of Auckland University. Its the Chancellor and Council's job to appoint the Vice Chancellor (essentially the CEO of the place - the Council being more like the Board). So who did National's Council appoint? The present Vice Chancellor - who has brought in many of the changes National supporters are so furious about. But there were no secrets. There were no surprises. They knew who and what they were getting when they hired the VC we have now - National embraced it. It raised my eyebrows at the time and I discussed it beforehand with a former National Party Tertiary Education Minister who couldn't care less. Just like how so many National supporters voted in PM Chris Luxon and now every day of the week complain about the Treaty - you voted for the guy. He wants to throw Seymour's Principles Bill out in the bin - you voted for that to happen. By the way, now Scott St John is Chair of ANZ Bank and flew to India side-by-side with Prime Minister Luxon. Yes, the National Party loves him. He's their, and your, man.
The moral of the story is that most changes we have in NZ that National supporters cry hard about were brought in - by National. Auckland University has been built exactly in the image National wanted. By the way, the place has never interfered with my freedom of speech - my guest speakers have included the likes of Don Brash, Roger Douglas, Ruth Richardson, Bill English, Judith Collins and David Seymour. I've balanced their types with others like David Parker, Chloe Swarbrick, Chris Finlayson, and have met up with Barbara Edmonds. You should be grateful you've got a world top 100 university at your doorstep - a luxury that no other nation with a population our size enjoys. My aim is to see Auckland compete with the likes of the National University of Singapore and be in the world top 10. You should help us get there.
Professor Robert MacCulloch holds the Matthew S. Abel Chair of Macroeconomics at Auckland University. He has previously worked at the Reserve Bank, Oxford University, and the London School of Economics. He runs the blog Down to Earth Kiwi from where this article was sourced.
6 comments:
Look at the Times Higher Education world university rankings 2025 (Auckland = 152) and then the criteria to determine....
Robert, you are sounding more like a leftie lunatic, every day. The left are welcome to you as far as im concerned.
In the mean time, the good people of this country, who you are now deserting will continue the fight against the insidious left and the toxic social agendas.
Yep, mistakes were and are made. We need to correct these mistakes quickly before you lot end up like otago uni and having to lie about your placing.
Does it really matter which political party supported which people at the university? Why are you taking this as a personal attack just because you work there? The main thing that matters is that new students will be forced to study a subject that is fringe and nothing to do with their chosen field, which will surely put off all these foreign students for continuing to enrol at the university - I know it would put me off if I found out I'd have to waste my time and money on something completely irrelevant to my degree. In all your fighting words, you don't actually mention whether you think this new imposition (which is what all the fuss is about) is good or bad - you just launch an attack on those bringing this travesty to our attention.
My late father was an academic of right-wing persuasion, and although not writing on politics / economics , had similar overall attitudes to those of Prof McCulloch. I think he'd have called some commenters on this site, ''Slightly to the right of Genghis Khan"....
Well said, June. On this occasion, the good Prof has attacked the messenger (and those that agree with him) and completely avoided the real issue, which is untenable from a world university perspective.
The professor has rightly pointed out that National and Act are totally woke. All you Winston haters need to vote for him next time.
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