Sarah Henderson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education) Share this | Hansard source

I just rise to confirm that the coalition is not supporting these amendments. Since the introduction of the Higher Education Contribution Scheme in 1989 by the Hawke Labor government and later its replacement, the Higher Education Loan Program, it has enjoyed, by and large, major bipartisan support. This is a scheme that has worked well to support students to take on a university course and not have to find the funding for that course upfront. It has generally been a very successful scheme, but we have seen deep concerns arise by reason of escalating student debt, with an indexation of 7.1 per cent.

I remind senators here that, over the last decade, principally under the coalition government, the average indexation rate was just two per cent. Over three years, under this government, we are looking at a total indexation of 15 per cent. So the best thing, frankly, that we can do is see the return of a Liberal-National government which knows how to run the economy, which prioritises lower inflation, which reins in spending and which runs the economy responsibly. It's no accident that we saw very, very low indexation under our government. Students and young Australians—in fact, more than three million Australians—who have been hit with an average increase in their student debt of $1,700 a year have every right to question the government's competence in relation to this scheme. We hope and trust that under a future Liberal-National government the scheme will return to the great success that it was with moderate indexation, allowing students to do the courses of their choice, to follow their dreams to go to university, to take on a HELP loan, whether it be HECS or some other loan, and to do so in a way which is a fair and equitable. Be that as it may, this is a bridge too far, and the opposition won't be supporting these amendments.