The Crown Jewel of Poor Governance: What a Senate Inquiry Revealed About the ANU

By Sarah McCrea & Eduardo Caceres-Sandoval

Content Warning: This article contains content surrounding issues such as suicide, harassment, bullying, and miscarriage.

Alison Barnes, National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) President, opened Tuesday morning’s proceedings with a blunt assessment:

“I think ANU is the jewel in the crown of poor governance”. 

The comment came during the 12 August hearing of the Senate inquiry into the ‘Quality of governance at Australian higher education providers’, which saw major allegations levelled at ANU’s leadership. 

Barnes’ remarks followed the ANU’s recent public fall from grace, including claims made at Town Hall meetings in March that ANU’s financial position had been overestimated by $60 million – an exaggeration allegedly used to justify proposed cuts that would see “more than 12% of staff gone or to be gone,” according to Dr Lachlan Clohesy, NTEU ACT Division Secretary. 

The hearing’s witnesses included NTEU representatives, current ANUSA President Will Burfoot, and three former ANU Council members, among them Dr Liz Allen. In the afternoon, select members of the current ANU Council appeared. 

ANU Chancellor Julie Bishop and Vice-Chancellor Genevieve Bell were invited to attend the inquiry, but neither were able to be present. 

ANUSA President Will Burfoot represented the ANU Student Union at the Senate Inquiry. In his opening address, he said, “It has been made clear to me that many of the challenges facing students are not just a result of budget pressures, but of systematic governance failures at the highest level.”

“Make no mistake,” he stated, “The ANU is in crisis.”

Turning to his own experiences as a member of the ANU Council, Burfoot commented, “I have seen members intimated, mistreated, gaslit, and in some cases, I have felt these behaviours myself.” 

He referenced a Council meeting in February, alleging that he and former Council member Dr Liz Allen were “unfairly targeted” for their “connections to the community,” and that there were suggestions from other Council members of him and Dr Allen leaking Council information to the media. It was further alleged that the ANU Chancellor, Julie Bishop, directed “demeaning and dismissive” comments to himself and Dr Allen during that meeting. 

Burfoot then alleged that in an out-of-session Council meeting in July, Chancellor Julie Bishop “dismissed” a motion to temporarily pause Renew ANU until an ongoing investigation by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency was concluded. 

Renew ANU is an initiative launched by ANU as a part of the University’s plan to reduce its stated $250 million financial deficit. 

Burfoot added, “It is my opinion that that motion wasn’t voted on because at the time it would have passed…there was a deliberate attempt by the Chancellor to obfuscate and distract from that motion.” 

Later in the morning, three former ANU Council members and one former Head of ANU’s School of Music addressed the Senate. 

The first to speak was Mr Millan Pintos-Lopez, member of the ANU Council until 2022, and current NTEU Branch President at ANU. He referred to a “deeply intimidating” email sent to him by ANU’s legal office, along with requests – allegedly directly from ANU’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) – that he submit timesheets chronicling activities related to the NTEU, and that the COO obtain his performance development review, which Pintos-Lopez described as “not standard practice.” 

“I believe these actions were in direct response to my public criticism of the ANU’s leadership decision to launch Renew ANU,” he stated, concluding that at ANU, “open dialogue and public debate is stifled.”

Later on, in response to Pintos-Lopez, Jonathan Churchill, ANU Chief Operating Officer, stated that “it had nothing to do with him publicly criticising the executive team. I just want to make sure the obligations between employer and employee were appropriately satisfied – and they were.” 

Further countering the NTEU claims, Churchill stated that Renew ANU has at “every step…released draft plans and proposals for consultation with our community” and that “difficult decisions” were required to pursue “efficiencies” with “not all of those necessary decisions easy for some to accept”. 

Former ANU Council member and current staff member, Dr Liz Allen, made an address that documented her experiences of “threats, intimidation, and bullying” during her time in Council.

She called the current Council “dysfunctional and toxic” and stated that she “was bullied into near suicide” by members, primarily ANU Chancellor Julie Bishop. 

These allegations centre around a Council meeting in February 2025, where, as alleged by Allen, “The Chancellor made significant allegations of improper and illegal activity relating to leaking of confidential matters, specifically naming me and the undergraduate student representative.” 

Repeating “public allegations” and “increasing aggression” during the meeting led Allen “to begin to cry and hyperventilate.” She alleged that “Chancellor Bishop laughed incredulously at my emotional response and at one point blocked me from leaving the room.”

Allen reported that after this meeting, she “decided to commit suicide,” pulling over on her drive home “to write final goodbyes to my children and my partner.” Allen said the stress and emotional turmoil induced by the actions of ANU governance led her to miscarry a fortnight after the meeting.

At the March 2025 Council Meeting, ANU Pro-Chancellor Alison Kitchen allegedly told Allen her “position was untenable” and that she had a “responsibility to resign.”

Allen alleged that an investigation into the matter, beginning after she made a complaint to the ANU, was terminated after the intervention of ANU’s Chief Legal Officer, Philip Harrison. She added that this investigation would have “involved potentially exposing ANU misconduct.” 

Dr Allen listed the potential misconduct that would have been under scrutiny if the investigation had continued, including failed disclosure of conflicts of interest, encompassing this form of potential misconduct by the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, current Pro-Chancellor, and former Pro-Chancellor. 

Questioned by Senator Pocock on the allegations made by Dr Allen, Churchill’s response deferred to upholding institutional procedure, stating:

“As I mentioned in my opening statement, there is a current grievance procedure against the University initiated by Dr. Allen…it’s impossible for me to make comments…without compromising those proceedings.” 

Allen stated that Chancellor Bishop behaved with “god-like powers” which had gone “unchecked.” Allen described the “careful curation and manipulation of information that is presented to the Council”, which she believes acts as “carefully orchestrated cinema to make it appear as if what is happening is legitimate.”

Regarding accountability for top leadership at ANU, Senator Pocock questioned Churchill on the Nixon Review, with the possibility that “this behaviour goes right to the top.” The COO’s response was that a senior steering committee has been established to oversee the implementation of recommendations, and that “we are clearly committed to addressing these findings.” 

Senator Faruqi, during her time for response and questions, notably stated, “I feel no other pathway here but for Vice-Chancellor Bell and Chancellor Bishop to resign or be sacked.”

It remains to be seen what the implications of Tuesday’s Senate inquiry will be for the future of ANU leadership. 

Graphics by Shé Chani

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