Newly incorporated polytechnics face the same problem as most British companies - an urgent need to train quality managers to lead the UK back to competitiveness. John Stoddart, principal of Sheffield City Polytechnic, told the Association of Polytechnic Administrators' annual conference that "too little, too late and too few" described the state of managerial education. He said that the UK's relative lack of success economically was connected to its less qualified, less competent workforce.
The Australian Government wants to restrict the number of foreign academics appointed to universities and colleges of higher education. Under plans by the Department of Immigration and Ethnic Affairs, higher education institutions will have to prove that there are no qualified Australians available before residency is granted to overseas academics. Universities and colleges said that they would find it more difficult to appoint foreign academics at the lecturer level if the plans were ratified.