What is the Governments response to the funding pressures confronting the University of Newcastle?
The Hon. CARMEL TEBBUTT: I thank the Hon. Peter Primrose for his important question. No-one could have failed to note in news broadcasts today the outcome of the funding pressures on the University of Newcastle and the impact that will have on both staffing and course availability. It is a tragedy for Newcastle. Universities are known throughout the world as higher seats of learning and they hold a special place in communities as centres of excellence. They are regarded as the engine rooms of intellectual development, and nowhere is this more so than in places like Newcastle, where the university is a critical part of academic, cultural and community life. The University of Newcastle is renowned for its research and its innovation. The university announced that it had identified an expected deficit of around $28 million for 2004; that is almost 9 per cent of its annual budget. Of that amount, $13 million relates to an advance payment that the university expected to receive from the Com
