Deborah O'Neill (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Innovation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Social Services Legislation Amendment (14-month Regional Independence Criteria) Bill 2018. Last year the parliament passed the Social Services Legislation Amendment (Simplifying Student Payments) Act, with the support of Labor. The act included an amendment that made it easier for young people from regional and remote areas to qualify as independent for youth allowance purposes. Recipients of youth allowance are paid at either a dependent or an independent rate. The rate of youth allowance received by someone who is assessed as dependent is affected by their parents' income, whereas the rate for a recipient who is assessed as independent is not.

There are a number of ways in which an applicant can qualify as independent for the purposes of youth allowance, including when they have supported themselves through paid work over an 18-month period since finishing secondary school. The Social Services Legislation Amendment (Simplifying Student Payments) Act 2017 reduced the existing 18-month period to 14 months for students from regional and remote Australia. As a result of that change, from 1 January 2018 full-time students from regional or remote areas who need to move from their parental home to study in another place can qualify as independent if, since leaving secondary school, they have met one of these criteria: firstly, if over a 14-month period they have earned 75 per cent or more of wage level A of the national training wage schedule included in a modern award—which in the 2017-18 financial year was equal to $24,836; secondly, if for at least two years they have worked at least 15 hours each week. Their parents must also have earned less than $150,000 in the previous tax year.

It was intended that the new 14-month period be applied to existing and new Youth Allowance applicants; however, a drafting error means that it has only been applied to applicants from 1 January 2018. I'm pleased that this bill corrects this by applying the 14-month period to young people who were receiving youth allowance prior to 1 January 2018. It's anticipated that this bill will allow about 300 young Australians to claim independence for Youth Allowance purposes using the reduced 14-month period, not the original 18-month period. Labor will support this bill because we believe all young Australians have a right to a tertiary education if that's what they choose.

Although this bill will help a small number of students, the Turnbull government is making other changes that will have significant negative impacts on students. The Turnbull government has frozen Commonwealth grants to universities, and with that action it has effectively ended the demand-driven system. We have great concerns that this will lock some students out of education, and I believe this to be a terrible mistake.

We've also seen the Prime Minister propose lowering the threshold for repayment of HECS-HELP loans to $45,000, meaning that more young Australians will have to start repaying their HECS and HELP debts sooner. It was, of course, the former Labor government that lifted the caps on the number of university places, leading to a significant increase in the number of students who were able to attend a university. Since places were uncapped in 2009 there has been a 55 per cent growth in university enrolments from the poorest fifth of Australian households, and a 48 per cent growth in the number of regional and rural students at universities. That has to be a good thing. In addition, we've seen 89 per cent growth in the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students attending uni, and a 106 per cent increase in the number of students with a disability attending university.

The lesson here is clear: Labor opens the door to learning and opportunity, and this conservative government, in large measure, shuts it. Already the Prime Minister's $2.2 billion cuts to universities are hitting home. Recently, the Universities Australia chair, Margaret Gardner, urged the government not to slam the door of opportunity shut on young Australians who aspire to a tertiary education. There are reports that some universities may now have to turn away students. It's estimated that around 10,000 students will miss out on a place at university this year as a result of the Prime Minister's harsh cuts.

Labor wants to ensure that Australians have access to the best possible postsecondary opportunities. Unfortunately, the conservatives want to make it harder for young people to access postsecondary opportunities. Regardless, as I indicated at the commencement, Labor does support the Social Services Legislation Amendment (14-month Regional Independence Criteria) Bill 2018 for the advantage that it gives to 300 young Australians who are seeking to manage the responsibilities of study, work and life costs.

Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This bill makes a minor technical amendment to the Social Services Legislation Amendment (Simplifying Student Payments) Act 2017. I thank senators for their contributions and commend the bill to the Senate.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.