Jess Walsh (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Early Childhood Education) Share this | Hansard source

The government appreciate the work that the Australian Greens have done on this bill, including those amendments that we have been able to accept. In relation to the particular amendment that you just spoke to, which goes to issues around student contributions, the Universities Accord made several recommendations to reduce student contributions and reform HECS or HELP repayment arrangements. As a government we have implemented many of those recommendations, including fixing indexation of HELP debts and making the repayment system fairer as well. Last year we cut 20 per cent off student debt, which has reduced student debt by around $16 billion dollars and benefited over 3.2 million Australians.

Right now, with the interim ATEC in place, Professor Stephen Duckett is working with the interim ATEC to understand the true costs of teaching and learning at university. This is a really important and complex first step in the process of any future reform. The bills establish the functions of the ATEC, including providing advice on 'the efficient cost of higher education across disciplines and student cohorts and in relation to the Commonwealth contribution amounts'. This work that Professor Duckett is undertaking and provisions in the ATEC bill that allow for that work to be done are an important first step that the ATEC will be able to take following the passage of this legislation.

As Minister Clare has said, we are taking these reforms, as outlined by the Universities Accord, one step at a time. We're taking the Universities Accord recommendations to reduce student contributions and reform HELP repayment arrangements one step at a time, and we're also taking this big step today or passing the ATEC bill, also recommended by the accord.