Celia Hammond (Curtin, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Amendment (Governance and Other Matters) Bill 2020. The VET sector in Australia is large and diverse, and this was noted in the Braithwaite report of 2016, the later Joyce review and the most recent rapid review undertaken in late 2019. There are approximately 4,000 RTOs in Australia, and the Australian Skills Quality Authority regulates approximately 3,700 of them. There are close to 1,500 qualifications being delivered across Australia, and over four million students are enrolled in nationally recognised VET. Private RTOs deliver VET to approximately 58.7 per cent of students; TAFEs to 17.6 per cent and community education providers deliver to nine per cent. The providers vary in size and in scope. VET is also delivered by universities, schools, enterprise providers and a combination of the above. Modes of delivery include part-time, full-time, online, distance, apprenticeships and traineeships. The Productivity Commission review which came out in May advised that $1.6 billion is spent annually by governments in Australia on VET. That is $1.6 billion across sectors of government.

When I first considered this bill, it was pre COVID-19. The reflection I had at that time has been absolutely reinforced by what has transpired over the last three months, which was that Australia needs to have a VET sector delivering high-quality and relevant training qualifications which are reliable, accessible and affordable. We need a VET sector that can be quickly responsive to changing needs and demands. And VET is equally as important for individual Australians as it is for Australia as a nation. Individually, people deserve to have access to opportunities to learn skills and develop expertise so that they can utilise them in an ever-changing work environment. Skills and expertise empower people. They give them a higher degree of independence and autonomy and greater opportunities to participate in the workforce, to exercise initiative and to achieve. As we face an unemployment rate potentially as high as 10 per cent because of the impact of COVID-19, as we take steps to recover, reboot and rebuild, making sure that people have the ability to acquire new skills and new expertise to be able to move into different areas of employment is absolutely and vitally critical.

At a national level, the capacity for our national economy to grow, compete and thrive in a global economy is dependent on us having a workforce that is highly skilled, adaptable and resilient. At the same time, as we've seen over the past couple of months, uncertainty in international supply lines means that we as a country need to have internal expertise to step up and innovate when required. We have seen this over the past couple of months: distilleries making hand sanitiser and factories urgently repurposing to make essential PPE. This has been able to be done because we have a skilled workforce.

As good as our VET sector is, it can be better. An improvement that was identified in the Braithwaite review, the Joyce review and the rapid review and commented on by the Productivity Commission is the need for the regulatory environment to be fit for purpose and robust. Let us remember that we are spending $1.6 billion on this sector annually. Let us also remember that there are four million Australians enrolled or studying in this sector. It is absolutely vital that our VET sector is excellent. All three of the reports I just mentioned noted the many comments made by VET providers about the regulator, ASQA. They noted their experience with inexperienced auditors, their fear of not being treated reasonably and the lack of information and guidance given to them ahead of an audit, and they all noted that change is needed.

This bill picks up on those recommendations from the Joyce, Braithwaite and rapid reviews in relation to the VET regulator. Its purpose is to support a consistent, transparent, balanced and effective regulator and regulatory environment. These changes will support improvements to the national VET regulator's governance arrangements, regulatory practice and other critical areas of business, such as strategy, communication and sector engagement. The revised governance model contained in this bill draws on best practice for Commonwealth regulators. There are four key elements. The first element is the replacement of the existing three-commissioner structure with a single agency head, to be known as the chief executive officer of ASQA.

The rapid review noted that the current lack of clarity in the roles and responsibilities of the three commissioners led to inefficiencies and a lack of direction in ASQA itself. The rapid review also noted that, as at September 2019, of the 101 non-corporate Commonwealth entities—that is, entities such as ASQA—only three did not have an individual as the accountable authority. I've heard questions asked as to why it is necessary to change the governance arrangement, but good, proper governance and good, proper regulators have a clearly set out management structure. That is important internally, within the organisation, as well as externally, for those who have to deal with the organisation. Combining the three commissioners into one and having one clear CEO helps to address that.

The second element in this bill is the establishment of a statutory expert advisory council to advise the CEO of ASQA. The advisory council will provide ASQA with expert strategic advice to help it continuously improve as a regulator while maintaining its independent regulatory decision-maker. The council will not represent particular stakeholders or jurisdictions. Rather, it will comprise of members with diverse expertise in areas such as communications, delivering training and experience operating a training provider. It should really be noted that the advisory council will not be a decision-making body but rather a valuable support for strategic advice, a vehicle for confidential information sharing and a strong foundation for stakeholder confidence in the regulator.

The third element is the inclusion of the information-sharing arrangements that support the use of data collected by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research. Improved information sharing will support governments and regulators so that the diverse needs and requirements of all Australians, including groups with different needs, such as people with disability and those where English is not their first language, are considered in policy, funding and regulation.

The fourth element of the bill is to clarify the nature of directions the minister may issue to ASQA to improve its regulatory process. The bill provides for the minister to give a broad direction to the national VET regulator in relation to the performance of its functions or powers. This power isn't unlimited, and the statutory independence of it as a regulator is preserved by prohibiting the giving of directions by the minister in relation to a particular regulatory decision.

As I noted right at the beginning, for our VET sector to be strong and to thrive, for it to best suit the needs of the students, the providers, the employers and the country as a whole, we need to have a system that we trust. There is $1.6 billion, and there are four million people undertaking VET studies. There have been questions about why we're focusing on changing the regulator. Is it important? Should we just be throwing more money into VET at this particular time? Having a strong regulatory body, one that is trusted and performs its functions efficiently and expertly, is actually a precondition for pouring money in. This ensures that the money is spent wisely and effectively. In order to make sure that the VET system delivers what we need, we need to start at the top, with the VET regulator. That is why this particular legislation is essential. Trust in the VET system is dependent on there being an effective regulator, one that starts and ends with a focus on quality and excellence. An effective and excellent regulator is one which strikes the right balance between its different functions of approving, quality monitoring, educating, and compliance monitoring and enforcement. An effective regulator is one which is respected by those over whom it exercises its jurisdiction. It's neither a toothless tiger nor a pushover. Nor is it a body which focuses on form and forms—on box ticking rather than substance.

As a result of the rapid review, there are going to be further changes and a longer-term program of improvement to support ASQA's continued evolution as a modern and effective regulator. There are going to be changes to VET and higher education as well. However, the changes being implemented now, based as they are on expert advice and following best-practice guidelines and arrangements of comparable bodies across Australia, will enhance ASQA's organisational capability and support best-practice regulation, continuous improvement and effective engagement with the VET sector. These changes will facilitate a shift towards the balanced regulatory approach that is essential for all those involved with VET in Australia and will support Australia in the longer term.

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