Federal Budget must deliver ‘Social Dividend’ to Education
18 April 2000
The Prime Minister’s comments at the Liberal Party National Convention, indicating that his Government will shift its focus to social policy, have opened the door for the Coalition to reinvest in Australia’s public education system. The fifth Costello Federal Budget to be delivered next month must include an increase in education spending if Australia’s is to remain competitive and ensure that the benefits of economic growth are shared amongst the community.
\"Next month’s Federal Budget must include a dividend for Australia’s education system\", said Dr Carolyn Allport, NTEU National President. \"This is the first budget since Dr Kemp acknowledged the funding crisis facing our universities in his leaked Cabinet submission. Dr Kemp has ensured that Cabinet is aware of the difficulties faced by tertiary education staff and students. Having ruled out Dr Kemp’s unpopular solutions, Cabinet must now deliver a budget which begins to repair the damage by investing some of the ‘social dividend’ in our universities.
\"The Prime Minister justified past economic reform on the basis that it ‘is about making people feel more secure, happier, more able to care for their families.’ Investment in education produces precisely these results for the community. If the Prime Minister is serious about social policy, he must provide leadership and ensure that education does not get ravaged by budget cuts and ignored in the ‘social dividend’.
\"Higher education alone contributed about $1 billion in budget savings in the Coalition’s first budget in 1996. The spending announced at the Liberal Party National Convention constitutes less than a quarter of the cuts to our universities. The scale of the damage to the quality and accessibility of our universities has been considerable. Rectifying this damage will require significant and sustained increases in funding.
\"With education likely to be a significant area of policy contest at the next election, the Howard Government has an opportunity to establish serious credentials in education policy. Failure by the Government to include education within its new social agenda will be at its own electoral peril.\"