The University of Otago is taking no action over an online auction organised by staff which has two alcohol companies as sponsors, even though the university has banned alcohol advertising and sponsorship from its campuses and events.
A North Dunedin liquor outlet and a local brewer were among 15 businesses supporting the auction, organised by financial services division staff to raise money for the Otago Community Hospice.
The sponsorship was also mentioned in the latest edition of the Otago Bulletin, an official university publication.
Last week, the university council adopted a ban on alcohol advertising and sponsorship at all five campuses, at university-organised events, and from university publications and communications.
University registrar Jan Flood said yesterday because the sponsorship and Bulletin item were arranged well before the adoption of the ban, no action would be taken.
"This small element of the charity auction . . . and the notice about it in the Otago Bulletin is not being treated as a breach of the ban. It is one of the transitional issues that the vice-chancellor [Prof Sir David Skegg] alluded to in his memorandum on the ban."
However, she said the university would not be expecting a repeat of similar activities.
Ms Flood said the university was taking a pragmatic approach to the implementation of the ban.
The only action taken so far had been painting over the billboard at the former Bowling Green Tavern, which the university bought in March and is converting into research and teaching space.
There had been one inquiry about the ban since it was adopted, she said. That was from the Otago University Students Association (OUSA) and related to a full-page advertisement for a beer company booked for this week's edition of student magazine Critic. The advertisement appeared.
Ms Flood said the page had already gone to the printers when the OUSA made its inquiry and the university and OUSA would "revisit this and other related issues in further discussions".
