22 November 2012

Massey should defend its academic by ending lobbying relationship

TEU national president Sandra Grey says Massey University should immediately distance itself from Mark Unsworth and his lobbying company Unsworth Saunders after his attack on one of its academics, Dr Mike Joy.

Mr Unsworth has been emailing Dr Joy in an attempt to stop him speaking up publicly on his area of expertise, the quality of New Zealand's waterways.

The New Zealand Herald reports that Mr Unsworth wrote: "You guys are the Foot and Mouth Disease of the tourism industry. Most ordinary people in NZ would happily have you lot locked up."

Massey University is a past or present client of the lobbying company Unsworth Saunders.

"We have argued in the past that public tertiary institutions should not waste public money hiring private lobbying companies to have their voice heard by the minister for tertiary education or other public education officials," said Sandra Grey. "However, that corporate relationship moves from wasteful to dangerous when the lobbyist in question starts attacking academics for doing their job."

"Massey University should defend its academic Dr Mike Joy and end its business relationship with Unsworth Saunders immediately. Other tertiary education institutions that have a business relationship with Unsworth Saunders should do so too."
ends

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World Refugee Day:
Are We Doing Our Bit?

On World Refugee Day, Thursday June 20th, Doing Our Bit will officially launch a campaign to double New Zealand’s UNHCR Refugee Resettlement Quota...

New Zealand’s low refugee intake is not a new issue. In February a NZ Herald editorial commented that our intake was ‘paltry’, remarking that ‘surely we could do more’. In April, Amnesty International described the quota as ‘tiny'.

“Despite being a small country in the middle of the South Pacific, New Zealand prides itself on being hospitable. We are friendly to overseas visitors and we see ourselves as punching above our weight in international affairs,” said Murdoch Stephens, coordinator of Doing Our Bit.

“However, in terms of accepting refugees New Zealand is clearly not doing our share.” More>>