Matt Burnell (Spence, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

There is a challenge that Australia faces with regard to its transforming workforce. That challenge is especially prevalent in Spence. It is noted in the Universities Accord that over the next five years 50 per cent of all new jobs created will require a bachelor-level degree or higher and another 40 per cent of those jobs will require at least some form of post-secondary qualification as well. In Spence, where over 50 per cent of our electorate do not have any post-school qualifications in 2021, this means that nearly 60,000 people will be unable to work in 90 per cent of all new jobs created in the next five years. This trend will only continue to accelerate as we move toward 2050, with 55 per cent of all jobs in Australia by that point requiring tertiary levels of education. It's also pressing that only one in 10 residents in Spence are currently enrolled in a higher education program, which sits well below the national average of 15 per cent. Fortunately, this government is tackling these challenges head-on through the considerable reforms already undertaken in response to the accord, helping to ease access for people in Spence and across the country to higher education.

The reforms in this budget are exactly what our community has been calling for, with a survey done by my office reflecting this. The north wants to see access to university significantly improved. My constituents are calling for an expansion of university institutions to the north. We were also told that visibility is an issue, with many in Spence forgoing the opportunities provided by tertiary institutions because of a lack of presence in our electorate. Our potential students are finding it difficult, when weighing up their future, coming out of high school or training, to consider the possibility of university when it can't be seen from where they have lived and grown up all their lives.

We also noted from our survey that there is a fundamental distance between universities and our community, not just in a geographical sense, as these institutions largely exist within the city of Adelaide, but also in a mental way: there seems to be a generational distance away from considering university education. That is why these reforms, in their capacity to bring quality higher education providers into outer metropolitan areas, are so important in ensuring that those in our community, often from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, can take full advantage of our world-class tertiary providers. This is coming in the form of suburban university study hubs, or SUSHs, offering 14 new hubs across the country, to be hosted in outer metro areas. It is bringing opportunity for the individual out to where it needs to be, for the future good of the nation as a whole.

There is also a focus on tertiary harmonisation, in that the government has outlined a pathway for universities, vocational training providers and TAFE to link more closely as a priority measure. It means that students already in training can upskill further and consider a wider variety of meaningful options as they move into the workforce. This will also make it easier for local industries across a range of sectors, such as manufacturing, defence and engineering, to access skilled staff already based closer to where they operate. Better still, it will enable those potential employees to link to employers with much greater ease and with a chance to work much closer to where they reside.

Building on all of this are our other budget commitments around affordability, including a $427.4 million investment over four years for a new Commonwealth prac payment. Those on placements—the future nurses, teachers and social workers of the north—can now gain meaningful experience without compromising their livelihoods.

We're also addressing the HECS system by limiting its indexation to the CPI or the WPI, whichever is the lower, to ensure that our students can enter the workforce and pay off debts in a sustainable manner. This will wipe around $3 billion of student debt from more than three million students. We are also investing $350 million to deliver fee-free uni-ready courses, adding to existing foundational study programs on offer at universities and providing a free, accessible means for students to enter tertiary education regardless of background or means.

These are holistic measures with holistic benefits, not just at the individual level through greater access to higher quality education but for the wider community for generations to come. The foundations are being built for skilled workers, trained and educated by institutions in our patch, to be crafted right on our doorstep.

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