Darren Cheeseman (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The Higher Education Support Amendment (VET FEE-HELP and Providers) Bill 2009 shows again that Labor is the party of good governance. It shows that the Rudd government is a progressive government and will continue to be so. This is definitely a government committed to providing opportunities in education. When I was putting this presentation together, what struck me was that this is yet another education bill that this government has before parliament. We have had so many education bills before us since I came into this place in 2007, and all of them are about reforming and improving the education system and people’s access to it. We are very lucky to have such a committed Minister for Education. I think it is great to see all this work being done on education, in this case the important VET sector.

As I mentioned, the Rudd government is not only a progressive government but a government that is distinguished by good governance, and this bill highlights this. How does this bill show us that? Because it is not just about encouraging participation, which of course we are doing, but it is about properly targeting benefits and then delivering them efficiently. That is what this bill is all about: encouraging participation in education, but also ensuring public money is being used as wisely as possible. We want to target payments and make sure people are not mucked around in getting access to those payments. So, to the detail of this bill.

This bill provides for technical amendments to the Higher Education Support Act 2003. It ensures students’ access to assistance under the VET FEE-HELP Assistance Scheme is limited to those VET units of study that are essential to the completion of the relevant VET course that they are studying. It ensures consistency between the FEE-HELP and VET FEE-HELP assistance schemes that we have in place. It also allows for a higher education or VET provider notice of approval to take effect on the day immediately following the day the notice is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.

The VET FEE-HELP Assistance Scheme provides loans to eligible fee-paying students undertaking certain VET courses of study, to help pay for all or part of their tuition fees. This is another way in which the Rudd government is encouraging students to participate in education—another way we are increasing participation right across this nation. Students can access training and defer the fees until they are able to pay those costs.

The VET FEE-HELP Assistance Scheme is targeted to certain higher level skills, as access to assistance under the scheme is limited to VET courses of study leading to the award of a VET diploma, VET advanced diploma, VET graduate diploma or VET graduate certificate. Under current arrangements, there are no provisions which expressly limit a student’s access to assistance under the scheme to those VET units of study which are essential, and directly relevant, to the completion of the student’s VET course of study. These amendments therefore ensure access to VET FEE-HELP assistance is appropriately targeted to those VET units of study which are essential.

This change is particularly important for my own state of Victoria. The Rudd government has made a decision to support the Victorian government’s VET reform agenda by allowing for the extension of the VET FEE-HELP Assistance Scheme to subsidised diploma and advanced diploma students in my state. As of 1 July 2009, a greater number of VET providers will be offering access to VET FEE-HELP assistance to their students, increasing the risk that funding may inappropriately support students undertaking nonessential VET units of study. So the change will be important in that respect.

As I have said, this bill is also about efficiency in delivering the benefit. A characteristic frustration for many people when they know they are eligible for a benefit is how much of a fuss it is to actually get it—how much rigmarole you have to go through and how long it takes. This bill also makes amendments to the provider approval provisions, to ensure a greater number of approved higher education and VET providers can operate sooner, giving eligible students faster access to FEE-HELP or VET FEE-HELP assistance with those providers. In the way it works at the moment, there are unacceptable delays and additional costs for higher education institutions and registered training organisations applying for approvals, and this leaves students without access to FEE-HELP or VET FEE-HELP assistance during this time. The amendments will ensure that higher education and VET providers can operate on the day immediately following the day on which the notice of approval is registered. Under these amendments, parliament will still be able to scrutinise approvals of providers. A notice of approval must be tabled in both Houses of parliament and a disallowance period of 15 joint sitting days will apply, and approval will still be subject to the requirements of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

The VET sector is, of course, very important. In addition to providing good intrinsic education across a wide range of subject and career areas, it is often a bridge to keep people going in education. So many VET students have gone on from these studies to secure good jobs, support families and forge careers. The FEE-HELP or VET FEE-HELP assistance to students is helping many people into VET courses. It is raising our overall participation in education. It is improving people’s skills and employability. It is widening people’s employment choices and opportunities. This bill is not only improving participation; it is targeting public money where it is most needed and where it will be spent most widely, and it is delivering benefits efficiently. This bill is another example of our government on the ball, delivering for education. I commend the bill to the House.

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