CDU vice-chancellor Scott Bowman was exposed at the Federal Senate inquiry into the proposed Middle Arm industrial precinct on Thursday for attempting to stifle academic freedom and failing to disclose glaring conflicts of interest with major Middle Arm gas proponents in the university’s submission to the inquiry, which appears to have breached academic policies and marred the university’s reputation.

Mr Bowman faced the inquiry in Darwin on Thursday, where the public at times laughed at his responses and later applauded after independent ACT Senator David Pocock told the vice-chancellor he expected a university leader paid more than $600,000 a year to better understand basic concepts of academic freedom and the need to declare conflicts of interest.

In the 30-minute appearance, Mr Bowman was forced to publicly admit his failure to disclose conflicts of interest – including that the university’s chancellor Paul Henderson is a gas lobbyist and one of the architects of Middle Arm – as well as his failure to disclose the cash and gifts supplied to the university by the gas industry and Middle Arm proponents.

Mr Bowman tendered an unsolicited submission to the inquiry on behalf of Charles Darwin University supporting the industrial development at Middle Arm, but did not disclose in the submission that the university received funding and other benefits from the major gas industry proponents of the project.

The inquiry heard that the university also did not provide a process for any dissenting voices to be recognised before Mr Bowman tendered the submission, which led three professors to file two submissions to the inquiry critical of the university’s handling of the matter and questioning the motives behind the support for the project.

Instead of respecting the university’s policy on academic freedom, which specifically grants the “freedom of academic staff members and students to express their opinions in relation to the university”, the inquiry heard Mr Bowman pressured the committee to suppress one submission entirely and ordered them to redact parts of the other, because he did not personally agree with the opinions expressed.

Mr Bowman told the inquiry he respected the opinions but that they needed to be hidden from public viewing because they “didn’t reflect well on the university”.

“We had no problem with the content of what they were saying, which was kind of, they had an opinion on this,” he said. “What we were concerned about, there were a couple of statements in which we thought were incorrect and didn’t reflect well on the university.”

Mr Bowman said that included “that we were sort of in the pockets of the gas industry” and that the other submission pointed out there was no internal process established by him or the university to put together the university’s pro-Middle Arm submission.

He admitted asking the committee to redact parts of the two submissions, “or not publish at all”, but maintained that he in fact respected academic freedom.

Mr Pocock said it was clear Mr Bowman had only changed his mind on the issue when the committee told him they would not be suppressing the professors’ opinions.

“You can have your academic freedom, just don’t criticise the university and that seems to be what’s happened here,” Mr Pocock said. “And then when it comes to conflict of interest, your own policy says that any perceived conflict of interest must be ‘recognised, managed and declared’, which you clearly also haven’t respected.”

Gas industry major university partner; Bowman says ‘not too sure’ about uni’s conflict of interest rules

Under questioning, Mr Bowman revealed that gas giants Inpex and Santos had provided money to the university for scholarships, as well as Santos providing “somewhere between $100,000 and $200,000 for research”, but moved to downplay the significance of that by suggesting it was a small amount compared to the millions CDU receives in total for research.

Asked if he should have declared the conflict of interest in the university’s submission, Mr Bowman responded: “Ahh, I, I, I’m not too sure what all the rules of the conflicts of interest are – maybe we should have looked at the rules”.

Mr Bowman later claimed that he did not personally “perceive” any conflict of interest.

“I don’t meet with the gas industry on any kind of regular basis,” he said. “I meet with them sort of at events, but no, I didn’t perceive a conflict of interest.”

Mr Pocock then read a CDU news article celebrating the university’s partnership with Inpex, in which Mr Bowman was quoted saying he was “thrilled to continue the longstanding partnership” and thanking Inpex for their “generous donation which will play a big part in enhancing our research and teaching capability”.

Mr Bowman had also reportedly said that Inpex is a “wonderful industry partner of ours and throughout the years, our graduates have gone on to work with them”.

“If I was to read that I would think, wow, that sounds like a fairly cozy and reciprocal relationship and if you’re putting in a submission and you have a conflict of interest policy, then maybe be upfront, we receive funding we have a relationship?” Mr Pocock said.

Mr Bowman then stated there was no conflict of interest.

“I mean, I can only tell you that didn’t influence our submission,” he said. “What our submission is about is that we are very pro-economic development for the Territory and think that [Middle Arm] has lots of benefits for the Territory.

“I accept that, I didn’t see it as a conflict of interest.”

Inquiry chair, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said it did not matter if Mr Bowman did not think it was a conflict, “the policy is to avoid other people perceiving it”.

Mr Bowman then said his submission did not mention the word ‘gas’.

“I don’t think we mentioned the word gas in our submission at all,” he said.

“It’s a gas hub,” Ms Hanson said, leading the public gallery to burst out in laughter.

Greens Senator Dorinda Cox then asked Mr Bowman about a current MOU that CDU has with Tivan Limited, another proponent of the Middle Arm industrial precinct.

He said the MOU was “pretty general” and that Tivan wanted to use CDU for TAFE training for staff.

“Did you think that was not important to tell us in the context of this inquiry?” Ms Cox said.

“No, I didn’t. There is no reason why … I, I, accept that I should have probably, yep,” Mr Bowman said.

“Mr Bowman, I put to you that for $600,000-odd a year, you should be far more across conflicts of interest and academic freedom,” Mr Pocock said, eliciting applause from the gallery.

“We hold up universities as places of integrity, of passing on knowledge to the next generation and you are insulting the Senate by not disclosing these sorts of conflicts of interest.”

Mr Bowman was silent.

Henderson’s university conflict of interest register to be revealed

Mr Pocock asked Mr Bowman earlier about former chief minister and gas lobbyist Paul Henderson’s influence at the university in his role as chancellor and his public comments that he had a “vision” for a “whole new” gas-based manufacturing industry in the NT.

“He currently runs a lobbying firm, Bespoke Territory, which has an unknown client book as the Territory doesn’t have any lobbying register – what conflicts, real or perceived, has the chair registered with the university?” Mr Pocock said.

“I would have to take that on notice to see what he’s registered,” Mr Bowman said.

He then pledged to provide that register to the committee.

Mr Henderson was co-chair of the Territory Economic Reconstruction Commission with former Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris, which was created by former chief minister Michael Gunner in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, that touted the Middle Arm petrochemical hub as the cornerstone of the Territory’s economic future.

No timeframe was provided for when Mr Henderson’s conflicts of interest register would be provided.