Nola Marino (Forrest, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and I understand the great interest that the members opposite have in our very good measures.

So the clearing and simplifying of the national curriculum is very much appreciated. As the minister would be aware, the Independent Public Schools system has been in operation in Western Australia now for some time, and I sit on two of those boards. One of the things that frequently has been mentioned in my work in and out of schools, on a regular basis, is the issue around the national curriculum and the difficulty that teachers have had in meeting the requirements of that and being able to teach those core subjects. So it is a very sound move that you have made in this space.

But I wanted to ask you about one of the key budget measures that has really not been tackled by any previous government, and that is: for the first time, Australian students who have moved overseas for more than six months will be required to pay back their HECS debt as if they were still residing in Australia, and this will happen from 2017. Minister, could you please explain why this is a fairer approach, and can you also give us some idea of what the level of overseas HECS debt is currently and whether you have an indication of what it is likely to rise to as a result of the demand-driven system ahead of us, please.

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