Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Carr, the Minister representing the Minister for Education. Can the minister inform the Senate why reform of Australia’s student income support system is needed? What benefits can Australian students and their families expect from the government’s Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Income Support for Students) Bill? What will be the cost of inaction? How will the government’s proposed reforms benefit Australian students and their families, particularly students dealing with social, economic or geographic disadvantage?

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Brown for her question. The government’s reforms will make support available to many more students. They will ensure that money goes to those in greatest need. Together with the Greens and Senator Xenophon, we stand by those reforms. Without these reforms more than 150,000 students across Australia will not receive the $2,254 start-up scholarships in 2010, and 21,000 existing Commonwealth scholarships voted out of existence earlier this year will not be paid, meaning that there are no scholarships being paid by the Commonwealth in 2010.

More than 100,000 students across Australia will get less youth allowance or no youth allowance in 2010. Students who move from home to study and who would be eligible for a $4,000 relocation scholarship in 2010 will not be able to receive that if these measures are not supported by this chamber. Students from families on $300,000 a year will continue to get youth allowance and some 25,000 students from families earning less than $44,165 will miss out on increased support.

Honourable Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Halt there, Senator Carr. There is too much noise in the chamber and I cannot hear the answer. I need order on both sides.

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The age of independence will remain at 25, rather than being lowered to 22 by 2012 and preventing around 7,600 students from receiving the independent rate. Years of Liberal and National Party neglect have left Australia with a system that fails students from working families and from families in rural and regional Australia. Now they are trying to continue— (Time expired)

Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Can the minister advise the Senate how Australia’s universities view the government’s reforms? Is there support for action to improve the student income support system? Given the diversity of the higher education sector, can the minister provide information on the attitudes of universities representing different perspectives, in particular those of the research-intensive Group of Eight, the Australian Technology Network of Universities, and Innovative Research Universities Australia? Are these attitudes shared by university students themselves?

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The fact that the coalition in this chamber—

Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Coalition?

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

or what presents itself as a coalition, Senator Sherry, has taken the unprecedented step of refusing to adopt a committee report has meant that 150,000 young Australians have been left in limbo. Families around the country who have been dreaming of achieving a better life for their children through education will be denied that dream. Professor Alan Robson from the University of Western Australia says:

The Group of Eight supports these changes because they target finite resources to the students most in need …

Professor Ross Milbourne from the University of Technology Sydney says the absence of reform:

… is not only bad for the education system in Australia, but it’s bad social policy and is very bad long term economic policy.

Professor Paul Johnson from La Trobe University reminds us that these reforms ‘will make a fundamental difference to’— (Time expired)

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, despite the requests from the opposition for more, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.