Anne Stanley (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I've spoken at other times in this place about the critical need for Australia to have a skilled and job-ready workforce. Unfortunately, the failure of successive coalition governments has meant that many geographical areas around our nation have critical workforce shortages. Further, there are a number of workforce speciality areas that have severe shortages, regardless of your postcode or where you live.

The key to addressing workforce shortages is training and education. This can often commence at high school but also occurs at TAFE, university and through approved course providers. A key aspect of meeting Australia's workforce needs is free TAFE courses. Along with the states, the Albanese Labor government has partnered to deliver more than $1.5 billion worth of funding for 500,000 fee-free TAFE and VET places across Australia from 2023-26. This is a marvellous program and one that I am delighted to support. I have seen firsthand in the electorate of Werriwa the life-changing and positive effects that the fee-free TAFE program is having. It really can be a game changer. It opens opportunities to my constituents that they would never have been able to achieve.

Complementing the fee-free TAFE program is the government's delivery of a 20 per cent reduction to student HECS debt. Hundreds of thousands of Australians have already received that SMS message from the Australian Tax Office, and millions of Australians will continue to receive it over the coming weeks, advising them that their debt has been slashed by 20 per cent. I'm sure that will be a welcome early Christmas present for everyone.

Importantly, and relevant to the matter before us now, VET student loans are also included in the debt reduction scheme. Student loans for vocational education and training were first introduced in 2008, under the VET FEE-HELP scheme. Without these VET student loans, many students wouldn't have had the opportunity to undertake tertiary studies, with serious flow-on effects for Australian businesses and industries. The 2008 scheme was subsequently replaced in 2017 by the VET student loan program. The 2017 program had its own legislative framework, while still continuing to use the same system platforms.

A review of how VET student loans are administered has identified that there is no role for VSL providers to handle tax file numbers in the act. To be clear, VSL providers are registered training organisations approved by the Australian government to deliver these approved courses, including TAFE institutions and private colleges. This bill seeks to address this issue to ensure there is certainty for both students and those providers. Tax file number information is essential for the administration of the VSL program, because a provision of the TFN enables accurate tracking and repayments of VET student loans, particularly when a student's income reaches the repayment threshold.

The bill before us will result in stronger alignment between the relevant IT systems and the legislation. This bill will retrospectively authorise VET student loan providers to handle students' tax file numbers to administer the VET student loans program. This also includes retrospective authorisation of approval of the VSL provider's historical activities that involve requiring or requesting, collecting, recording, storing, using and disclosing students TFNs for the purposes of facilitating the administration of a student's loan application for a VET student loan or the loan itself.

Finally, the bill will also provide certainty to providers and government offices that their past handling of students' TFNs for administration of the VET Student Loans program from 1 January 2017 to 30 September 2025 was indeed lawful. Importantly, the matter this bill speaks to has been addressed throughout 2025, as the department has made updates to relevant IT systems to mask the VSL student tax file number, meaning that VSL providers no longer need to handle the TFNs. Thankfully, I note there have been no VSL student complaints as a result of past practices.

I note that, as a result of this bill, there will be no change to the way that students apply for these loans, and they will still continue to use the electronic Commonwealth assistance form. I commend the minister for bringing this matter before us for debate. Providers and relevant government offices need certainty that they were acting lawfully at the time in the way that they handled students' tax file numbers.

Similarly, students deserve equal certainty that their sensitive information is handled appropriately and according to the law. Australia, under the Albanese Labor government, has a VET program which will be the envy of the rest of the world, and this bill will ensure it remains that way. I commend the bill to the House.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

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