TEU thinks competition is the biggest threat to academic freedom

The TEU recently had a conference on academic freedom. I found this amusing as one of the biggest enemies of academic freedom is the TEU. There have been numerous stories of academics who have faced sanction for saying something which upset someone, and the TEU has refused to defend the academics. In fact sometimes the TEU even joins the with count against the heretics.

So what did the TEU decide was the true threats to academic freedom:

Presidents of NZTEU, Dr Julie Douglas, and NTEU, Dr Allison Barnes talked about academic freedom as a union issue and resisting the growing constraints on academic freedom brought about by the financialization of tertiary education institutions and the pressures of market competition.

So the problem isn’t lecturers being too scared to say what they think due to woke lymch mobs. It is market competition. Equally sad and hilarious.

The conference also addressed proposals from Act Party leader David Seymour to amend the Education and Training Act to require universities to adopt “Free Speech Policies.” However, Professor Giselle Byrnes from Massey University dismissed the need for such changes, pointing out that free speech is already protected under existing law. 

So the TEU is against actually requiring the universities to meaningfully protect free speech on campuses. Yes it is already in the law, but with no ability to be enforced. The law change will require universities to actually measure and report on free speech on their campuses – something that everyone should want.