Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, with your indulgence: you learn something new every day. Apparently I have not been prepared in public to advocate our industrial relations position. You could have fooled me.

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition will come to his question.

Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Does the Prime Minister recall telling the parliament in 1999:

The government will not be introducing an American style higher education system. There will be no $100,000 university fees under this government.

Is the Prime Minister aware that the 2007 Good Universities Guide, published today, shows that next year there will be 96 undergraduate degrees costing over $100,000 and five of those costing over $200,000? Given that the average new mortgage in Australia today is around $220,000, why is the Prime Minister forcing young Australians to choose between a university education and a home of their own?

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In answer to the Leader of the Opposition, the reference I made to $100,000 fees was a reference to HECS funded fees; it was not a reference, as the Leader of the Opposition knows, to people who paid full fees. At present there are no $100,000 university fees for Commonwealth supported students. Let me say that again: there are no $100,000 university degrees for HECS funded places in this country. That is the situation.

Let me remind the House that 97 per cent of all undergraduate Australian students are in Commonwealth supported places. For all these students the government covers 75 per cent of the cost of study. Universities may admit full fee paying students. There is a 35 per cent cap on the number of full fee paying undergraduate students, and fewer than three per cent of all undergraduate students actually take up this option. What the Labor Party is proposing is a circumstance where if you are English or American or Chinese or Japanese you can pay full fees—

Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Childcare) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms Plibersek interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Sydney is warned!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

but if you are an Australian you cannot. In other words, the Labor Party wants to go back to a policy that discriminates in favour of foreigners and against Australians.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, on a point of order: this was not a question about foreign students. It is a very clear quote—

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Grayndler will resume his seat. There is no point of order.

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I conclude by reiterating what I said at the beginning of this answer. The reference I made, and I freely acknowledge making it, was to Commonwealth funded or HECS funded places. I repeat: there are none of those in Australia which are costing $100,000. The opposition knows that, and once again the Leader of the Opposition is misleading the Australian people.