An aspect of the freedom of expression that is protected in our Bill of Rights, academic freedom is also recognised in the Education Act, where it is defined as the freedom of academics and students ‘to question and test received wisdom, to put forward new ideas, and to state controversial or unpopular opinions.’ New Zealand has a proud legacy of academic freedom, with Karl Popper, in exile from his native Vienna, able to write his The Open Society and its Enemies here during World War II.
