Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Carr for the question. Indeed, we have been making sure as a government that all relevant agencies of government take responsibilities that are appropriate to them for cleaning up the mess in the VET FEE-HELP system that was created by the former Labor government. We have acknowledged that there are problems in this system. Earlier this year, when I was directly responsible for vocational education and training, I wrote to the ACCC asking them to undertake investigations in areas of their responsibility. The ACCC are of course the responsible entity when it comes to misleading and deceptive conduct, whether you are a training organisation or any other business acting in the Australian economy. In other areas, the Department of Education and Training are responsible for how VET FEE-HELP is administered, and they indeed have been undertaking, along with the Australian Skills Quality Authority, separate investigations into the Phoenix Institute.

This government has introduced a range of reforms to try to clean up the very open-ended mess that the Labor Party created in establishing VET FEE-HELP. We acknowledge that there appear to still be wrongful activities occurring out there in the marketplace. Legislation is before this parliament at present to bring into place new reforms and additional reforms that would further tighten up the sector, commencing from 1 January next year, and we are looking at further measures to make sure that we stamp out the type of unscrupulous, unethical behaviour we have seen from some vocational education and training providers. We will work, absolutely, through the ACCC, through ASQA, through the department and through any other relevant authority that we need to to make sure we stamp out these practices. The government warmly welcomes the fact that the ACCC has undertaken these investigations, has instigated such proceedings, because it is the right thing for the ACCC to do, working with all other agencies. (Time expired)