THE University of Newcastle Students' Association has hit back at Whitehaven chairman Mark Vaile and Hunter MP Joel Fitzgibbon's comments about controversy around the chancellor role, saying "coal is on its way out and there's no stopping it".
Mr Vaile was appointed to the role of UON's chancellor on June 4, but walked away from the position on Monday, following a concerted campaign that focused on his links to the fossil fuel industry and that was sparked by Professor Jennifer Martin's resignation from the university council in opposition to Mr Vaile's appointment.
UNSA president Luka Harrison said on Wednesday that Mr Vaile had described the movement against his appointment as "based on emotion and not fact".
"However, there's one fact that Vaile seems to be ignoring - coal is on its way out and there's no stopping it," Mr Harrison said.
"Whilst the Hunter region should be proud of its industrial roots as the powerhouse of the Australian economy, we also need to be honest with ourselves.
"Change is coming, and no matter how much people like Mark Vaile and Joel Fitzgibbon complain, we have to change with the times.
"As the academic and research hub of the region, the University of Newcastle has a responsibility to help lead the Hunter's transition away from fossil fuels and towards renewables.
"This won't happen overnight, but we need to act or our region will be left behind."
Mr Harrison said UON was the first university in the country to procure a contract to be 100 per cent renewably powered and commit to being carbon neutral by 2025.
He said appointing Mr Vaile as chancellor would have been a "backwards step".
"They can go on about their 'new McCarthyism' and call us whatever they want," he said. "'Dangerous' and 'unjustified' in the words of Vaile, or 'misleading' and 'shrill' in the words of Fitzgibbon, students don't care.
"We'll continue fighting for climate action regardless of what they call us.
"If Fitzgibbon really cared about his constituency, he'd be fighting for greater investment in renewables right here in the Hunter so that mining industry workers can access good, reliable jobs when the money for coal dries up.
"Being stuck in the past and reminiscing won't bring coal back and it does nothing for students, workers or the wider community.
"We need to work towards practical solutions like investment in renewables instead of selling false hope that the mining industry will be suddenly revitalised."
Mr Harrison said COVID-19 made a "massive impact" on the education sector and that this was compounded by "attacks from the federal government like Job-Ready Graduates", a package that saw the government increase its contribution to the cost of degrees in "key growth areas" but reduce its contribution to others.
"Students would prefer it if Fitzgibbon was more vocal on issues such as this, rather than wasting his time berating us. Instead of attacking students, our supposed leaders need to what they're elected to do: lead."
Mr Fitzgibbon told Parliament the "demonisation" of Mr Vaile had sent a bad message to tens of thousands of local people who work in the coal industry and associated sectors.
"I can sadly report to the House that a new form of McCarthyism has crept into the Australian culture, and it's alive and well in the Hunter region, deep in coal-economy heartland," he said.
Mr Fitzgibbon said investment in new low-carbon technology was growing exponentially and largely being led by large corporations with a history in the oil, gas, energy and mining sectors.
