Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is with great pleasure that I rise to ask the first question of the Assistant Minister for Education and Training, Senator Birmingham, representing the Minister for Education and Training. Congratulations on his elevation to the ministry. Can the minister please update the Senate on the progress of the government's higher education reforms?

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

I thank Senator Ruston for her question—and for her congratulations—and her particular interest in higher education, and especially for regional universities and regional students and their roles in the higher education sector.

Our government is committed to delivering reforms that position Australia well for the future, reforms that ensure Australia is in a position to compete on the world stage, reforms that ensure all parts of the Australian economy are able to succeed, and that includes, importantly, our higher education sector. That is why, as senators will know, the government has introduced a new higher education reform bill which includes a number of important reforms that we have adopted and included from the members of the crossbench following our consultations last year. Of course, the core essentials of our reform bill remain intact, because it is so important to position our university sector as being as competitive as possible into the future. But the new reform bill does adopt a number of important aspects.

The new reform bill accepts Senator Day's proposal to keep the indexation of HECS at the CPI. It accepts Senator Madigan's proposal, which I understand Senator Dio Wang also supported, commending for HECS indexation to be paused for the primary caregiver of newborns. As advocated by Senator Muir, the government will fund more scholarships for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, on top of the Commonwealth scholarships which the reforms will create. The new reform bill guarantees that domestic fees, combined with the Commonwealth contribution, must always be lower than any applied to international student fees. The government, under the new bill, will also direct the ACCC to monitor higher education fees— (Time expired)

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Can the minister advise the Senate of recent support for the government's higher education reforms?

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

I can apprise the Senate, and it is a range of very important developments in this regard.

Senator Wong interjecting—

Senators, particularly Senator Wong, might like to know that the Regional Universities Network, TAFE Directors Australia and Universities Australia have all reiterated their support for higher education reform. They have all reiterated their support for the core components of our government's reform package, such is the breadth of that appeal. As Universities Australia recently said:

Our appeal to Senators—

that includes all of you opposite—

as they return to Canberra is not to ignore the opportunity they have to negotiate with the Government in amending and passing a legislative package that … delivers the quality of education that students and parents expect.

We have been willing to listen; we have been willing to negotiate. We would welcome those opposite to come to the party and engage in the reform agenda too. (Time expired)

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Can the minister further inform the Senate of other developments in relation to the government's higher education reforms?

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

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

Senator Wong and others might like to know that it is not just the Regional Universities Network, not just Universities Australia, not just the TAFE Directors Network; indeed, various Labor figures have urged the opposition to engage in this reform debate. Former Treasurer and former higher education minister John Dawkins has urged the Labor Party to engage in this debate; the architect in many ways of the modern university system has urged Labor to engage. Maxine McKew has urged them to engage. Let me quote from The Australian, under the heading 'Dawkins backs uni reforms':

The father of the modern university system, former Labor minister John Dawkins, has backed fee deregulation and urged the party not to lock itself out of sensible reforms.

But if John Dawkins does not do it for those opposite, what about Gareth Evans? He, too, has backed the reforms. So we would say to those on board, 'Listen to Mr Dawkins! Listen to Mr Evans! Come on board!' (Time expired)