Second Cardiff University body ‘not given a say on Kazakhstan project’

Martin Shipton

A second significant body in Cardiff University’s governance structure was not given the opportunity to vote on a controversial move to establish a “branch campus” in Kazakhstan, it has emerged.

Nation.Cymru recently revealed how the university – which in January announced plans to cut 400 jobs and close five of its Schools including Nursing and Music – had admitted that no formal vote was taken at its supreme governing body, the University Council, to endorse the project in the former Soviet Central Asian republic.

At the same time, the university’s Vice Chancellor, Wendy Larner, ordered that an email about the governance failure sent by the Council’s Chair to its members should not be released to Nation.Cymru.

‘Approved’

Despite the university’s admission that no formal vote on the project took place, the university issued a press release in the wake of the University Council meeting stating: “Last week, our Council met to consider the proposal for Cardiff University to establish a branch campus in Astana, Kazakhstan. After extensive discussions, including contributions and questions to the HM Ambassador to Kazakhstan, Ms Kathy Leach, Council has approved the proposal, subject to final legal agreement, marking an important step in Cardiff’s global engagement strategy.”

In March 2024 a Nation.Cymru journalist submitted an FoI request to the university stating: “Please let me know if there was a formal vote at the last Cardiff University Council meeting to endorse Cardiff University’s plans for its Kazakhstan development; and what was the content of the email that was subsequently sent by the Chair of Council, Pat Younge, to Council members.”

The university responded, stating: “There was no formal vote undertaken at the last meeting of Cardiff University Council.

“The subsequent email by the Chair to Council members was sent in the expectation of confidentiality and without prejudice in order to inform the University’s approach to areas of institutional vulnerability or strategic risk. Council are the supreme governing body of the University. They must be able to conduct their business and the business of the University in a safe and secure way. Aligned, individual Council members must feel safe to express their views on such matters without fear.”

Internal review

Nation.Cymru has requested that the university conduct an internal review of Prof Larner’s decision to block release of the email.

Now, a member of the university’s Senate has come forward to say that the body was not consulted about the Kazakhstan campus.

Dr Andy Buerki, one of the academic members of the Senate and a prominent activist in the Cardiff branch of the University and College Union, told us: “According to the University’s Ordinances, ‘the Senate shall be responsible for all matters having academic implications’, but Senate did not get a chance to discuss, never mind vote on the Kazakhstan agreement, nor were we given any information specifically for Senate.

“The only thing we were given was a small section of the minutes of a meeting of the Academic Standards and Quality Committee (a sub-committee of Senate) where that committee said they did not have concerns about academic standards in relation to Kazakhstan in the papers of one Senate meeting – but there was no discussion even of that small point).

“Although the University Council is the governing body, I and many other Senators feel that it is counter to the Ordinances that the Senate was not asked for its view and given a say over the Kazakhstan adventure.”

Governance failures

We sought a comment on the matter from Judith Fabian, who chairs the University Council’s Governance Committee, asking whether she shared Dr Nuerki’s concerns about governance failures on the university’s part.

Ms Fabian did not respond.

A Cardiff University spokesperson said: “We reject Dr Buerki’s assertion that there has been a governance failure. As Dr Buerki acknowledges himself, the Council is the University’s governing body and, as the supreme authority, the final decision rests with the Council on all matters.”

We asked the spokesperson when the University Council had voted on the Kazakhstan project, but did not receive a response.