Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am probably unusual among members of this House in having experience of both the university and the vocational education sectors in this country. Eighteen months after leaving school, I became an apprentice carpenter and joiner. I enjoyed the work and I learnt a lot from my old boss, Peter Mahony, and his foreman, David Blackburn—although they would probably beg to differ! I enjoyed the work. However, one undeniable fact that I did learn as a young apprentice was to expect very little but obstruction and intimidation from the then Builders Labourers Federation, the union that is now known as the CFMEU. But that is a story for another day.

When I examine this motion, I find that it is based on false premises which I cannot accept. First, it is based on the misplaced assertion that the government does not have a clear and well-resourced policy to support universities and ensure that all Australians are given the opportunity to get a degree. It does, as the Minister for Education and Training has laid out in this place and others.

Second, it is based on the wrong idea that the Australian university education as supported by this government is not excellent value. It is, as demonstrated by the many thousands of students from all over the world who come here to study. It is also a little-known fact that domestic university students in some courses pay as little as 20 per cent of the actual costs of their degree. That is why HECS has its name. It is the Higher Education Contribution Scheme. You would think that, if the Labor Party were so aggrieved by students having to pay for even a part of their education costs, they would reintroduce free tertiary education. But, of course, for all their posturing and confected outrage, they have not and they will not, because they are all talk and no action just like this motion put by the member for Sydney.

I want to talk about the most damaging false assumption that lies beneath this motion. It is not the university system that is letting down many young people; it is the misguided belief that going to university is the only or, indeed, best path to a better future for all of our nation's young people. We often talk about finding the jobs of the future, but there are skilled jobs crying out to be filled in this country today. The Department of Employment creates a list every year of jobs where local businesses have difficulty recruiting skilled people. Look, for example, at the skills shortage list for my state of Queensland. You will not find on that list public relations managers, civil engineers or, indeed, lawyers. These are all admirable professions filled with dedicated and skilled workers, but the fact is we have plenty of them.

What you will find on that list are the skilled workers that Queensland desperately needs; bricklayers, butchers, carpenters, joiners, painters and plasterers. You will find welders, panel beaters, machinists and chefs. Stonemasons are also on the list. So are floor tilers and roof tilers. Most of these trades are listed as a statewide shortage, meaning employers are unable to fill or have considerable difficulty filling vacancies. Consider this startling fact: in the great state of Queensland, employers are finding it nigh-impossible to get a skilled bricklayer or a skilled butcher.

The belief that a university education is the only or the best way to get ahead must take a share of the blame in creating this situation. The consequences for young people that the member for Sydney places at the government's door really come from this false assumption. Research by Graduate Careers Australia tells us that, in the first year after graduating from university, 73.9 per cent of new graduates who want one find a full-time job. Their median income is $54,000. In contrast, research from the National Centre for Vocational Education Research suggests that 77.6 per cent of VET graduates are employed after their training. Their median income is $56,000. In some parts of the construction industry electricians are earning up to $80,000 to $100,000. Of course, a university education sector is expensive. It is an intensive and resource-heavy process with no immediate commercial outcome. In contrast, an apprentice generates income from day one.

If we do not do something about our skills shortages, this country will be facing a skills shortage not seen since the Second World War.

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