Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Faruqi, as I said, the working group that minister Clare established is due to report back and provide draft recommendations to education ministers next week. They are expected to include the establishment of a national student ombudsman. Education ministers have been briefed by the chair of the working group on early considerations for ensuring student and staff safety. One of those emerging recommendations—and we'll have to wait and see what the report says—is a new national student ombudsman. Any such new body would need to have teeth to meet the needs and expectations of students across Australia. The full scope of draft recommendations is being finalised by the working group and will be provided to education ministers for consideration. I give Minister Clare credit for taking on this issue. It's something that has needed doing for quite some time. Let's hope this ombudsman gets up and running soon and can actually start making a difference on university campuses.