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

Inequality is something that cuts across generations. This is especially true in the north, where, because of that disparity, opportunities like going to university feel unrealistic and unaffordable for families in my community. That's why the Albanese Labor government has decided to change the game by making higher education more accessible and affordable, to break down these barriers to opportunity and help Aussies with the cost of living at the same time. We're doing that by wiping 20 per cent off the HELP debt of every single Australian, increasing the income threshold before student loan repayments start, and reducing the amount that students will pay when they reach the threshold.

These changes will help millions of Australians like Bec, one of the 19,024 people in my electorate with a student loan debt, to pay off their loan earlier and earn more while they do it. Bec said, 'Reducing my student debt would mean I am able to start getting ahead of my mortgage repayments and plan my future better.' To quote Bec again, she believes these changes will 'go a long way in allowing us to set ourselves up for the future and to break the cycle of generational inequality'. Bec is spot on, and that last part—levelling the playing field for Australians—is what drives me every day I walk into work. That is what this government is going to deliver by making higher education fairer, more affordable and more accessible in communities like mine.