David Gillespie (Lyne, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Deputy Speaker, my congratulations.

Don Randall (Canning, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you.

David Gillespie (Lyne, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As the House would be aware, access to higher education in regional Australia has been a major challenge for our nation. It is for this reason that the federal Liberals and Nationals for years have implemented policies aimed at encouraging growth in the level of services and infrastructure in higher education, particularly amongst our universities.

In my electorate of Lyne, access to university education over the past decade has continued to grow, particularly as a result of the wise policies of the Howard coalition government. First of all, in the health space, funding was provided for the University of New South Wales to establish one of the many rural clinical schools. There has been one in in Port Macquarie for over 10 years now, and the University of Newcastle has established a Department of Rural Health in Taree. This investment has seen many medical students undertake their studies in Port Macquarie and Taree for well over a decade. A number of local medical specialists have also made themselves available to supplement the University of New South Wales program in Port Macquarie, and it is a similar situation with GPs and specialists in Taree. I myself have been heavily involved in this, and it has certainly been beneficial for both the medical students and the specialists and GPs who have taught these students.

Another critical coalition policy, which was fortunately retained by the Rudd-Gillard governments, was the introduction of a regional loading to assist universities with the provision of university programs and courses in regional Australia. In my electorate, the University of Newcastle established a campus over a decade ago courtesy of capital funding from this. The regional loading allowed it to introduce a number of courses, including Bachelor of Nursing, Bachelor of Teaching, Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of IT, at a shared campus in the TAFE building in Port Macquarie. The university has established a close collaboration with the North Coast Institute of TAFE and it has assisted the TAFE sector with participation levels for its diploma-level courses, which are increasingly articulated into the university's bachelor degree programs. At a recent University of Newcastle graduation ceremony in Port Macquarie, the chancellor and vice-chancellor were very proud of the fact that they had over 1,000 University of Newcastle alumni living and working on the mid-North Coast.

The coalition's Higher Education Endowment Fund, established in 2006, was set up to allow the income earned from this perpetual fund to be invested into infrastructure and services within our universities well into the long term. That fund, combined with the regional loading, has made it possible for Charles Sturt University to commence a very ambitious campus expansion into the mid-North Coast, with plans for a 5,000-student campus in Port Macquarie, with the first stage recently announced and on display.

Charles Sturt University's presence in Port Macquarie has grown quite a lot over the past three years and it now offers over a dozen bachelor degree programs at its temporary campus in Grant Street. Charles Sturt University has also established a close working relationship with the TAFE sector, helping to offer a broader range of local courses, particularly in the early years so that local school leavers and mature-age students who are looking to increase their academic qualifications can enter Charles Sturt University and University of Newcastle degree programs through the pathway programs at the TAFE. The University of New South Wales, the North Coast Institute of TAFE and Newcastle University have now developed such a close working relationship that a specialised joint medical education facility is being established adjacent to Port Macquarie Base Hospital and the University of New South Wales existing rural medical campus.

My predecessors as members for Lyne over successive periods have worked on this project. By attracting and retaining people to study in our region we are not only combating the brain drain but contributing to economic growth and social opportunities. I would like to congratulate Charles Sturt University, the University of Newcastle, the University of New South Wales and the North Coast Institute of TAFE on their commitment to delivering higher education opportunity on the mid-North Coast.