Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The government's record shows that they think of a grand idea, make a rushed announcement and little further thought is put into the matter. I am concerned that, with the scale of changes taking place in the higher education sector, implementation may yet again prove to be where a good and necessary program fails. I believe these changes are important and will be very disappointed to see that happen.

I hope that today's measure of introducing a single national quality assurance regulatory body will help to ensure implementation failure does not occur. The government has changed its approach to this legislation by actually listening to and extensively consulting with the industry and adopting the changes that were suggested. I pay tribute to the pressure put on by Senator Brett Mason in the other chamber to insist on this wider consultation. This took the original form of this bill from an overprescribed one-size-fits-all regulatory body that was first suggested in relation to TEQSA to a very workable system that has the potential to provide real change to the sector. I am encouraged by this change in the government's attitude and hope that genuine consultation and the process will continue. As we can see from the outcome of this bill, it is certainly a helpful process that delivers a positive change for all Australians.

The quality of our higher education system is of great importance to the sector. Without it, we risk losing the valuable contribution made by international students. We risk our graduates not being regarded with the calibre of their international counterparts and we risk the reputation of our wonderful university system. We should be proud of the success of our universities and graduates and support them through this time of change. TEQSA is a positive initiative in the reform of higher education and I commend this bill to the House.

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