Emma Husar (Lindsay, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to make a brief contribution to the debate on the Education and Other Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2017. This bill establishes a VET student loans ombudsman under the Ombudsman Act 1976, with the power to investigate complaints arising from the Commonwealth government's student loans scheme. I am assuming he is going to be rather busy.

This is an important reform because, given the recent controversies surrounding dodgy private vocational education and training course providers, students clearly need a watchdog in their corner to make sure they are not getting ripped off, as my friend and colleague the member for Paterson has just pointed out. This ombudsman is long overdue, and it comes after those opposite sat on their hands as the system derailed around them like a bad train accident, with more and more students being cheated, and more and more taxpayer funds being defrauded. The fact is that those opposite were too busy playing musical chairs with the portfolio to do anything about the growing problem that existed within it. But, when it comes to protecting VET students, and under a fairly apathetic government, I guess it is better late than never. Although I do think those affected are owed an apology.

When it comes to responding to the growing problems we have seen in the VET sector, Labor has led the charge in addressing these problems. In the Senate, we moved to establish a VET ombudsman more than one year ago. Where has the member for Wentworth been? MIA. At the time, the government said they would consider the idea and act on it. Well, it has taken them a fairly long time to finally act. And, I should note that, when they did act, they got it wrong. After 12 months of considering the issues, and after seeking feedback from the sector, they introduced a bill into the parliament that neglected to establish an ombudsman. This, of course, was despite students, providers and consumer advocates all calling for one. These I would refer to as the experts in the field. Once again, the government is not listening to those experts. We know that establishing an ombudsman was the most popular idea in their own discussion paper among industry stakeholders—again, the experts. So, following this incompetence, it was up to Labor to move an amendment to establish an ombudsman, and the government gave a commitment to introduce standalone legislation.

So here we are. Only after the government has been dragged kicking and screaming, the right policy finally prevails—and, I might add, a Labor policy. We believe this amendment has been brought forward in good faith, and we sincerely hope the government are genuine in their moves to establish this ombudsman, and we hope they demonstrate this genuineness by resourcing the office accordingly and not simply window-dressing. It is important to make very clear that we need outcomes in this area, because without significant changes our VET system will continue to be under enormous pressure and under threat of collapsing, leaving hundreds of thousands of Australians without a pathway to improve their skills and enter the workforce—which, I would suggest, is pretty bad for the budget.

On this side of the House, we in Labor believe in vocational education and training, and we believe in the people who rely on it to contribute to our society. And that is why it is so important that this government starts taking the VET sector seriously. Without a strong and effective VET sector, many people in my own electorate, and many more around the country, will not be able to reach their full potential, and therefore they will not be able to contribute to society as much as they otherwise would have—and that means we all lose.

Under the Liberals we have seen the sector ripped off and defrauded, with students being signed up to fake courses, people being enrolled in courses that are completely inappropriate and people being tricked into taking on significant public debt with absolutely no personal gain or return, nor an ability to repay. We know of people being bribed with iPads and the like, and these are vulnerable people—young, sometimes with a disability. They are made to sign up to courses they have no intention of participating in or completing, or that they have the ability to complete. We know of vulnerable people being tricked into enrolling in classes where the completion rate was less than five per cent. Shockingly, we know that the 10 largest private providers were, at one stage, effectively paid more than $215,000 for every successful graduate—such was the scale of failure in this sector. We know that 10,000 qualifications were cancelled in Victoria alone, because they basically weren't worth the paper they were written on. Just think about that for a second: while TAFE course fees around the country are rapidly rising—especially in my home state of New South Wales—and hundreds of thousands of people are being locked out of courses that could change their lives, millions of dollars of taxpayer funds have been spent on courses where the qualification was not worth the piece of paper it was written on.

We can talk about the numbers. We can talk about the statistics. We can talk about people being locked out, but what if you are one of those students? What happens if you are one of those people who spent your time, energy and money trying to study only to have that course that you qualified for, or the certificate that you obtained, ripped up?

It is estimated that up to 40 per cent of these dodgy Commonwealth loans will never be repaid, meaning taxpayers will end up footing the bill to the tune of billions and billions of dollars. Where is the government's obsession with debt and deficit on reflection of those numbers? Now, it does not actually surprise me that those opposite in the government have attempted to blame Labor, because that is their only effective policy; it is their fall-back position for every tricky issue facing this country. Every single time, it shows how hopelessly unsuited they are to leading this country forward. I can only imagine that, in ten years time, their entire legacy will be summed up in two words, 'hurt and blame' because, time after time, their actions hurt those who can least afford it, and their inaction is simply blamed on us. How unedifying and disheartening it must be for those opposite who actually came here to make a difference to their communities.

We also know that apprentice numbers in this country have fallen by 30 per cent—that is, 130,000 fewer apprentices under the Liberals. These are incredibly shocking statistics, and they point to a fundamental failure of this government. The government have not mentioned apprentices once this week but have mentioned Labor, Bill Shorten and the unions countless times—I think even in the hundreds. So where are the priorities of this government? This is a failure that belies their promise to govern for all Australians.

In contrast, Labor has always stood up for TAFE and our vocational education system, because we know how life changing these courses can be. And, unlike those opposite, we are in the business of improving the standard of living for ordinary Australians, not taking every opportunity to attack and reduce it.

Just on TAFE, I am a very, very proud TAFE graduate. TAFE changed my life and gave me the ability to then go on to university. I know firsthand the benefits and I certainly want to make sure that it is something that is around for my own children.

We are undoubtedly—over on the Labor side—the party of TAFE, just as Labor is undoubtedly the party of Medicare. That is a legacy that some on the opposite side might wish to consider—and what their legacy might be. We want to see more people have access to the technical and semiprofessional skills they need to engage in and contribute to our communities, and build a decent life for themselves. We believe that every Australian should have access to quality skills training that positions them well for our rapidly-changing world. It is about equity and, sadly, too many people have been taken advantage of under this government and too many people have been, and will continue to be, left behind.

You can go out into any community around the country and, I can assure you, one of the most trusted and respected government institutions will always be, and has always been, TAFE. People understand its importance and know the value it adds to the lives of those who learn there, but Liberal governments just cannot bring themselves to back in TAFE. They just do not get it. At a state and federal level, the Liberals have an ideological opposition to assisting people gain skills so they can better compete in the employment market and build a better life for themselves and their families. What is it that you guys hate so much about TAFE? And there is no point in denying it, because everyone knows that is the case.

Going back to the substantive issue at the heart of this bill, we know that stakeholders are supportive of the move to establish an industry ombudsman—and I touched on that earlier. However, we also know that there is quite a bit of disappointment among stakeholders that the powers of the ombudsman are not as strong as they could or should have been. We have heard that there is a preference for the ombudsman to make binding decisions, which it cannot do under this legislation. We have heard that an industry funding source could ensure the office was well resourced and out of the hands of government budgetary decisions and constraints. We have heard that, at the very least, there could have been a requirement of the department to take action against a provider that ignores a recommendation by the ombudsman, and we have heard the voices of people who would have preferred that this office had scope to deal with the entire VET system, not just the student loans aspect.

And it is important to note those positions but, overall, even though this bill does not deliver on those views, it does represent a substantive improvement to the status quo and, for that reason alone, I am happy to support this bill. Of course, this does show that there is room for improvement in future—for the government to come up with their own policies, not simply borrow ours. In this regard, the government is certainly on notice to either prove that their model works and actually deliver the desired outcomes or be willing to work with the sector in the months and years ahead to strengthen it even further.

I think the most important thing here and going forward is to ensure our VET system is strong and fit for purpose. We need a government that prioritises skills training and supports people who rely on vocational education and training. Time and time again, Labor has shown that we are up to the job and we will certainly be holding this Liberal government to account to make sure this system is fairer for ordinary Australians looking to increase their skills and, ultimately, engage more fully in their communities.

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