Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Hansard source

I am not sure there is a word of truth in the question that was just asked. Certainly we will make sure the Australian people understand what our higher education policies are, but we will not be going on a great big spending binge like those opposite. What we see from Senator Carr and his ilk is billions of dollars of additional spending promises which are only funded by $100 billion of new taxes. That is what they are proposing right across all areas of government. More spending and higher taxes is the formula from Senator Carr and those opposite. What we do will be budgeted, it will be affordable and it will ensure sustainability. I repeat again that sustainability in higher education funding is critical because it ensures that any Australian of any background can go to university without having to pay a dollar up-front. (Time expired)