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The Government has refused to assist the University of Otago with its $650 million building programme. The University will now have to fund the entirety of the proposed renovations itself, including an extension of the dental school programme.

Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce told the Otago Daily Times that the bid for funding made by the Tertiary Education Union was “unrealistic and unnecessary.”

TEU’s call came after Joyce granted Lincoln University up to $107.5 million in capital funding. Extra funding has been given to Christchurch institutions, says Joyce, due to the multiple earthquakes, which have affected student numbers and damaged assets.

Joyce further stated that granting the bid would be effectively “throwing money at everything,” pointing to the University’s “strong balance sheet” as evidence that it could fund the project on its own. Joyce conceded that while the University had asked for funding to extend and renovate the dental school, it had not made any bids for extra funding for the wider building programme.

Critic spoke to TEU’s University of Otago spokesperson, Shaun Scott, who believes the Government should be obliged to assist the University’s “huge investment” in the dental school programme. “[The Dental School] is a specific programme serving a national need,” urges Scott. “[It is] ultimately a public health delivery service, and a really crucial part of New Zealand’s health workforce.”

Scott does not believe the lack of governmental assistance will cause budget or staff cuts, as the University does make “judgment calls” when it comes to the allocation of funding. However, Scott stresses that the lack of support may cause other projects to take longer, as the dental school remains a “high priority.”

Dunedin Mayor David Cull, who sits on the University Council, has previously stressed the importance of government funding for the development of University facilities. He told the ODT, ‘’If the Government expects tertiary institutions to invest in more infrastructure, then they have got to fund them in a way that allows them to build up the funding to do that.”

The University declined to give comment to Critic, stating that they will only enter discussion with the Government directly. However, Vice-Chancellor Harlene Hayne has previously stated that the University had accepted that it would need to fund the dental school renovations itself after repeated rejections of bids for government funding over the last ten years.