The rebellion against the government's cuts to the higher education budget is unprecedented.
Never before has the Legislative Council rejected the government's spending plans for the sector. What makes the action even more striking is that the tertiary institutions had already endorsed the 10 per cent budget cut for 2004-05.
It shows that university staff, concerned about the implications of the budget cuts on their jobs, have succeeded in bypassing their own administrations to win support from political parties to derail the reductions. Staff fear that if the 10 per cent budget cut were approved, it would set the scene for further cuts in the 2005-08 funding period.
An obvious political move is at play: the Democratic Alliance for Betterment of Hong Kong is flexing its muscles under its new leadership.
Both the DAB and the Democratic Party see defending universities as a popular cause that will garner support from the student community and build bridges with academics.
But the implications for higher education will be dire if no solution to the deadlock is found by the start of the next financial year.
