Vince Connelly (Stirling, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Well, I relish this opportunity on two fronts. Firstly, it is a good opportunity to correct the record on a number of matters raised just now by the member for Kingsford Smith, principally that assertion that was just made that this government is somehow under investing in education. Secondly, there was a spurious and incorrect claim made that this government does not have a plan. I will pick up those two points under this address. I'd also like to make the observation that when we talk about education, we should acknowledge that there are many different paths that people take and, indeed, some of those paths change over time.

I was impressed as I am sure those of us who were here in the chamber at the time were as well, when the wonderful member of Mallee pointed out she was in fact 49 years of age when she began her two degrees and her PhD—what a wonderful story—and now she's here in this place adding massive value every single day. My own path was slightly different again. I went straight out of high school into the Australian Defence Force Academy down here in Canberra, which has a structure where students obtain a university degree through the University of New South Wales at the same time as undertaking military studies that lead to, obviously, a military career. So in my case, I was paying for my education through service to our nation for quite a number of years thereafter, which suited me quite well. Then my own eldest daughter, Tiggy, is in her first year at the University of WA undertaking a degree in psychology and criminology and comes home every day bounding with enthusiasm and energy, so they must be doing something right out there.

I would also take a moment to remind all of us that, unlike in previous generations, everybody who can go to university doesn't have to go to university. Certainly when I was leaving school, the approach was different. If you had the academic aptitude to go to university, that was the path you must take. I am very pleased to see there is an acceptance much more across our society now in having manual skills, having skills in technological fields, including IT, that may not require a university degree. Indeed the Deputy Speaker himself, I am well informed, hasn't been to university and now is a high-performing member of parliament. So I do take that moment to note that our kids growing up, and I am sure everyone would agree, should assess their options for what suits them, not what others say they must do.

This year's budget opens wonderful opportunities for education in areas needed to add value here in Australia. This budget has flagged significant investment in areas which include aged care, with an additional $17.7 billion allocated, so it is a great opportunity for those who want to work in both technical and non-technical means within aged care to get on board, as we rightly expand those products and services in the aged-care field. For the NDIS, an additional $13.2 billion has been allocated for that very important program, so there are some more great opportunities for those who want to apply their skills in an area that absolutely matters in helping out their fellow Australians—what a great opportunity. For mental health, there is a further $2.3 billion. Again, we need so many workers into the future in that mental health space. Sitting as I do on the Select Committee for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, one of the key things identified is that need for an enhanced workforce. So again, there are some great education opportunities in the pipeline. The last one I will finish on, as we talk broadly before I move more specifically to the structure of the bill and the purpose behind it, is around defence capability, something else that is near and dear to my and many other hearts in this place.

Defence capability will be boosted to the tune of $270 billion over the next 10 years. It's an appropriate and necessary investment and one that certainly comes with a great deal of opportunity for people to work in defence industry, building the ships and building the engines for our unmanned aerial vehicles, like I saw happening in my own electorate of Stirling, to be exported to the world. There are some wonderful opportunities right across that supply chain. For some of them, university education requirements will apply and for others they will not. So a very, very exciting future is ahead for our nation.

I'll turn now to some more of the specific detail in this bill. Of course, this bill is focused on extending the student loan fee exemption at a time when that just makes sense. Obviously we want to help our next generation of students who do choose to undertake university degrees to get there sooner and with greater ease. That's why we're seeking to extend this FEE-HELP loan fee exemption, which is already in place for a further six months until the end of this calendar year.

FEE-HELP first came into effect in 2005. It allowed people who were paying full course fees to access a loan similar to HECS-HELP. This provided choice to those who wanted to study at private higher education providers without having to borrow money, which some had previously had to do in the past. Undergraduate students accessing the FEE-HELP loan would normally accrue a 20 per cent loan fee, which would be on top of their amount, while HECS-HELP loans do not incur this fee. So what we want to see is the extension of this level playing field until at least the end of this year, which will be a boost for around 30,000 students at more than 100 private education providers across Australia. It's an incentive for students who wish to continue or commence study this upcoming semester and will bolster student enrolments. It's vital that we continue to support our higher education providers to deliver the high-quality education that is required for our nation's future workforce.

Yes, this will benefit Aussie students, but it will also be essential to our nation's economic recovery as we move forward through this recovery phase associated with the COVID-19 global pandemic. We are continuing to support our students—our future workforce—including apprentices and trainees. In this budget, the Morrison government is providing a record $20 billion investment in the higher education sector. That funding is a whopping 37 per cent up since we came to government. We're also committing more than $903 million over the next four years towards more places in the higher education sector and towards supporting more students. This year alone our government's Job-Ready Graduates Package is creating an additional 30,000 places, with the aim of creating 100,000 spots by 2030. But it doesn't stop there. The cost of degrees in key areas is going down: the cost of an agriculture degree has been slashed by more than half, 59 per cent down, to be exact; the cost of a maths degree is also down 59 per cent; the cost of a teaching or nursing degree has decreased 42 per cent; and the cost of a science, engineering or IT degree has gone down by 18 per cent.

It was only seven months ago, in October, when the government handed down our last budget, providing $1 billion to the sector for research and development due to COVID-19. This cash injection also helped ease the burden that was faced because of the inability of foreign students to study in Australia in the numbers that they had been and, of course, because of the associated loss of their tuition fees. Last year's budget also included an additional $298 million in funding for undergraduate places and $252 million for up to 50,000 additional short course places. These are just some of the initiatives that relate to the financial relief our government is offering to Australian students.

Extending the loan fee exemption will be a another step in the right direction by this Morrison government when it comes to supporting Australian students and reducing the financial burdens they face. As I said earlier, the exemption came into place in April last year before being extended to 30 June 2021. We want to see it continue until at least the end of this calendar year so that we can help undergraduate students with their learning as they seek to get out there and make a difference to the future of our great nation.

It is critical that this bill be passed as soon as possible, because the 30 June deadline is fast approaching, as is semester 2, 2021. Prospective students need certainty. They cannot be left in the dark when it comes to receiving accurate information from providers about their fees.

We are backing Australian students. We are investing in our future. I commend this bill to the House.

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