Media Release | 21 October 2026
Basil Zempilas MLA
Opposition Leader
Liam Staltari MLA
Shadow Minister for Education; Early Childhood; Disability Services
The WA Liberals will oppose the Cook Labor Government’s planned triple mega-merger of Curtin University, Murdoch University and The University of Western Australia.
Opposition Leader Basil Zempilas said the proposal was misguided in trying to dismantle three established public universities with their own identities, strengths and traditions, only to replace them with a single mega-institution that nobody asked for.
He said the proposal threatened years of disruption, reduced choice for students, potential job losses and an enormous cost to taxpayers – all without any clear or proven benefit to education or research outcomes.
Mr Zempilas said the Cook Government’s determination to pursue the triple merger was even more extraordinary at a time when West Australians were struggling with the cost of living, housing affordability and access to essential services.
The WA Liberals’ decision follows widespread criticism from across the university sector and wider community, with two major studies failing to establish a convincing case for the merger and the Government’s Deloitte cost-benefit analysis plagued by mistakes, questionable assumptions and AI-generated errors.
“This is a mega-merger nobody asked for, and the more everyone learns about it, the less anyone wants it,” Mr Zempilas said.
“Labor wants to spend hundreds of millions of dollars forcing three universities together while West Australians struggle to pay their bills, find a home or get the healthcare they need.
“The Government can’t even get the facts right in its own cost-benefit analysis for a merger. How can West Australians trust it to get the merger itself right?
“And given Labor’s appalling record of cost blowouts, West Australians have every reason to fear the final bill will be much, much higher than the Government claims.”
Shadow Education Minister Liam Staltari said the Government had failed to make a credible case for the merger and was ignoring the mounting concerns of universities, students and staff.
“We want a strong, competitive university sector, but bigger doesn’t always mean better and Labor hasn’t demonstrated how this forced merger will improve education or deliver better outcomes for students,” he said.
“Instead, it threatens years of upheaval, unnecessary costs and fewer choices for students, while universities are forced to focus on restructuring rather than teaching and research.
“The Government should abandon this mega merger and focus on strengthening our universities, not dismantling them.
“Western Australia needs a Government focused on delivering tangible improvements to tertiary education – not one chasing this latest pet project at any cost.”
Media Contact: Graham Mason – 0419 194 792
