John Williams (NSW, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I add to the comments of my colleague Senator Nash. This amendment brings some fairness into this equation. We have a situation in New England, where I live, where people in Tamworth, who are classed as inner regional, are excluded from the benefits being negotiated, yet we have areas such as Cairns and Townsville which are classed as outer regional. It is simply unfair.

We make the point that this whole debate has been about a fair system for getting people in regional areas into tertiary education. Unfortunately, about 30 per cent of people in regional Australia who complete year 12 go on to tertiary education, whereas some 55 per cent of students in the urban areas and city areas go on to tertiary education. We need these people in regional areas to undertake tertiary education. They are the ones most likely to return to regional areas to give us the services we so desperately need such as doctors, dentists and nurses. If we have any obstacles in front of them to restrict them from getting a tertiary education, then those regional areas will pay the price.

This legislation was brought forward by the Rudd government in the May budget last year. It has stalled. It should have been here and settled months ago. We even changed the agenda last November, when the government brought on the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, to settle this issue on youth allowance. We wanted it settled. The government has made the changes and the changes are unfair. With the amendments, we will make it a little bit better for some of those people in regional areas, but there are many others in those inner regional areas, as defined on the index, who will simply be treated unfairly.

On dependent youth allowance, parents on a $70,000 per annum combined income receive for their student $100 a fortnight to go to university, which is fine if you live in Sydney around the corner from a university—$100 a fortnight is probably good financial assistance to them—but in a regional area where you have to travel and where some $20,000 cost is the burden on you for accommodation and meals what is $100 a fortnight? It is nothing.

The whole youth allowance system needs to be looked at. In my opinion, it needs to be torn down and rebuilt so we have a fair system where people in regional Australia can have the opportunity to get a territory education and deliver those essential services back to regional areas. Already we have got the Prime Minister this week saying the government will spend some $600 million to get more doctors, specialists and nurses to regional areas. This is a start. Get an education system where those people in regional Australia can have the opportunity to get a tertiary education. That is why I strongly support the amendment put forward by my colleague Senator Mason. Areas such as inner regional should be included in this backflip by the minister as well. People in Tamworth and similar areas should not have to miss out.