Former foreign minister Julie Bishop will no longer be able to appoint her successor as chancellor at the Australian National University when her tenure ends this year.
In an unprecedented step, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) has intervened following months of turmoil at ANU, marked by concerns over governance, internal culture, and leadership.
Bishop herself has been the target of sustained criticism during her tenure, which began in January 2020.
It is the first time the higher education regulator has intervened so directly in the appointment of a university chancellor, a move widely interpreted as a rebuke of Bishop's leadership.
As a result, Bishop will be stripped of her role in selecting the next chancellor, which goes against long‑standing practice in the university's history.
Last week, TEQSA confirmed it had accepted a voluntary undertaking from ANU, which is in Canberra, that will see the regulator tightly supervise how Bishop's successor is recruited. Her term ends in December 2026.
The shake-up follows a year of escalating controversy, including the abrupt departure of vice-chancellor Genevieve Bell, public allegations of bullying and intimidation raised in a Senate inquiry, and mounting doubts over whether the university's council could be trusted to handle senior appointments independently.
Under the agreement, a selection panel with a majority of independent members will oversee the search for the next chancellor and recommend their preferred candidate to the ANU Council, which retains the formal power of appointment under the Australian National University Act 1991.
Bishop (pictured) has faced major criticism from staff during her time as ANU Chancellor
TEQSA itself will take an active role in designing and supervising the process in what critics have called a direct response to 'a breakdown in governance and trust at the university'.
'The next Chancellor will have a key role in setting the strategic direction and culture of the ANU,' the regulator said, warning of the need to move swiftly with Bishop's term ending later this year.
'We are satisfied the terms of the undertaking will ensure the selection process has the integrity and independence required to have the trust and confidence of the ANU community and other stakeholders.'
The intervention is the latest chapter in a damaging stretch for ANU's leadership.
Appointed in 2020, Bishop has faced criticism from staff, unions and some politicians for her leadership during a $250million cost-cutting drive that triggered mass redundancies, sweeping restructures and plummeting staff morale.
Tensions spiked in September 2025 when vice-chancellor Genevieve Bell resigned after just 18 months in the role, following fierce opposition to the 'Renew ANU' restructure.
Bell's exit came days after allegations of bullying and toxic leadership, some directly naming Bishop, were raised before a Senate inquiry into university governance.
Bishop has repeatedly denied all allegations and refused to stand aside, insisting she enjoys the full confidence of the ANU Council and is obligated to serve out her term.
Julie Bishop's (pictured with partner Stephen Gray) six-year term as ANU Chancellor will expire in December this year
However, ongoing unrest saw Education Minister Jason Clare refer the ANU to TEQSA, prompting a new regulatory compliance assessment.
While that assessment is still underway, the voluntary undertaking has broken a stalemate that froze the chancellor search while governance failures were probed.
The new framework requires staff, students and other stakeholders to be consulted so the selection panel understands the personal and professional attributes the next chancellor should possess.
TEQSA's move is seen across the sector as unprecedented.
In its 14-year history, the regulator has never intervened so directly in the selection of a university chancellor or taken oversight of the process.
Senior Albanese frontbencher and ACT Senator Katy Gallagher said the government backed the regulator's decision.
'In response to concerns raised by ANU staff, students and the broader ACT community, ACT federal Labor representatives want to make clear we support the voluntary undertaking to appoint a new chancellor, as agreed between the ANU and the independent higher education regulator, TEQSA,' Gallagher said in a statement on Tuesday.
'While reviews and inquiries into the ANU continue, the University needs stability while those processes run.'