IRELAND: `Civil war' could fractures colleges

Secret talks between Ireland's two biggest universities on a research alliance have angered other college heads. One was so annoyed he sent a leaked e-mail warning the Irish Universities Association representing the seven presidents it could "split into groups and civil war".

What particularly incensed the other five presidents was that the talks between Trinity College Dublin and University College Dublin were taking place at the very time the association was preparing a document for Prime Minister Brian Cowen setting out the need for collaboration and co-operation across the sector.

The outcome of the alliance talks was announced by Cowen and two senior Ministers on Thursday. It envisages a new fourth-level academy that will build on the combined strengths and individual distinctiveness of the two universities. The number of PhD students will be doubled, innovation made centre stage and mobility between the two campuses facilitated.

The two college heads promised a 'world-class enterprise corridor' that would be home for up to 300 new enterprises over the next decade, creating between 30,000-40,000 jobs. The cost is likely to be about EUR650 million over 10 years, with funding from government, industry and private sources.

The project was endorsed by the government which is desperately looking for a 'good news' story as the jobless rate soars and the economy drops into recession. It fits neatly into a recently- launched Smart Economy document published by the government.

Dr Hugh Brady, the no-nonsense President of University College Dublin, said, "Let's get real here. We are in a national crisis. [Brian Cowen] believes in this stuff and thank goodness he does because we can't go back to agriculture, we can't go back to low-cost manufacturing and certainly we can't rely on construction long term. So where is the next wave of economic growth to come from? It has to be this game. I certainly haven't heard of a compelling alternative".

At the launch, Cowen and Education Minister Batt O'Keeffe had to go out of their way to re-assure other universities that funding would not be 'ring-fenced' for the new alliance. Applications would have to be made under the latest EUR300m phase of the Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions where they would be decided after open competition and an international peer review.

This announcement went some way towards re-assuring the other university presidents in Cork, Galway and Limerick who feared the heavy political endorsement did not bode well for the regions.

"As long as there is a level playing field and there are no reliable indications to the contrary, these fears are unfounded," said the President of University College Cork, Dr Michael Murphy.

His counterpart in Dublin City University, Professor Ferdinand von Prondzynski, was equally sanguine after the launch. But Prondzynski had earlier sent around an email to his colleagues complaining the deal had been completed secretly.

"I find it hard to understand that we were not alerted in any way, and had to find out by reading the newspapers," he wrote. "Even now we have not been given any briefing or comment by either college, which I find extraordinary.

"This kind of thing destroys trust and confidence. The key worry is that college presidents have not been open with each other. If this is to be corrected, we need to meet and have an honest discussion, in which we genuinely reveal and hear what we are all up to. Otherwise we'll split into groups and civil war."

The Irish Universities Association met in special session the night before the launch and there was "a full and frank exchange", according to a spokesperson who denied the meeting was an "emergency" one.

One observer wryly commented, "The IUA may have avoided a civil war and the presidents are at least civil with one another - but who knows what will happen if this alliance gets the funding it's looking for?"