University defends staff against ‘inflammatory’ attack from high-profile donors

Victoria University has stepped in to defend its academics after an attack on their integrity on a website founded by one of the university’s most high-profile donors.

Victoria’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research, Professor Margaret Hyland said the University “strenuously rejects” claims made against its staff on a website for a new institute founded by donors Grant and Marilyn Nelson, describing their statements as “inflammatory”.

“A number of actions are in progress. We are unable to comment in detail on them at the moment,” Hyland said.

The Nelsons, whose Gama Foundation had donated $10m to Victoria University over the course of nearly a decade to endow its Institute of Governance and Policy Studies (IGPS), recently founded The Integrity Institute, which advocates for the repayment of $10 billion in allegedly overpaid wage subsidies - a figure strongly rejected by the Ministry of Social Development.

The terms of the donation were switched after a massive falling out between the Nelsons and the IGPS, details of which were recently revealed by the Herald.

The “about” section of the Integrity Institute’s website includes a 290-word section on the Nelsons, of which 120 words are devoted to their dispute with Victoria University.

The section repeats the claim that the IGPS and its director ignored the terms of the Nelsons’ donation.

When approached for comment, Grant Nelson said he was “not interested in talking”.

The University publicly hit back at claims on the Nelsons’ website by publishing a short statement on the IGPS’s website.

“There has recently been discussion in public forums about the work of the Institute of Governance and Policy Studies (IGPS) and its staff, both past and present,” the statement said

“The University affirms that the directors and staff of the IGPS are valued members of staff who have carried out high-quality research and contributed to the University’s critic and conscience role during their respective terms of office. The University notes that the work of the IGPS has been governed by a Charter and overseen by an independent advisory board,” the post said.

Asked about the Integrity Institute’s post, Hyland said the University had “serious concerns about inflammatory statements made regarding the integrity of its staff on the Integrity Institute website”.

Hyland said the University “strenuously rejects” the claims.

The Integrity Institute will also need to defend itself to the Advertising Standards Authority after the Ministry of Social Development made a complaint about the figures behind their ad campaign.

The Institute claimed $10b of wage subsidy funds were overpaid to businesses. If correct, that would mean roughly half of the $20b paid out in wage subsidies was overpaid.

But the Ministry of Social Development strongly contests the figures.

MSD’s Group General Manager – Client Service Support George Van Ooyen said the institute’s “reasoning appears to be based on a misunderstanding of the eligibility criteria for the Wage Subsidy Scheme, and of the results of our integrity work to recoup funds that applicants were not eligible for”.

“The claims made in these advertisements do not reflect the multiple independent reviews of the Wage Subsidy Scheme and MSD’s integrity program, including the Auditor-General’s report published in 2021.

“No evidence of widespread misuse has been presented by the Integrity Institute, and it would be inappropriate for MSD to rely on their “I have estimated” or “I have calculated” statements,” Van Ooyen said.

Former IGPS director Jonathan Boston was approached for comment.

Thomas Coughlan is deputy political editor of the New Zealand Herald, which he joined in 2021. He previously worked for Stuff and Newsroom in their Press Gallery offices in Wellington. He started in the Press Gallery in 2018.