Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for her question. When it comes to Australia’s higher education system, the Rudd Labor government wants to make sure it benefits from a higher education revolution as part of the education revolution. In order to deliver that—and I am glad that the member has raised the important question of higher education—the first steps are to deliver on our election commitments. On this side of the House, we believe in delivering on election commitments; on that side of the House, they are brushed away as non-core a moment after they are made. But we are delivering on our election commitments. We are of course delivering on our commitment to commence the phase-out of full-fee-paying places. I will be very interested when the new shadow minister for education can answer this question about higher education: do the Liberal Party still stand for the ability of Australians to buy a place in university over a student of merit? Do they still stand for that fundamental unfairness?

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