University Staff Reject Complete Free Trade in Education
20 January 2003
Australia has received formal requests from other countries for complete free trade in education as part of the current negotiations on the WTO’s General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). The requests are summarised in the Discussion Paper on the GATS recently released by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
The Assistant Secretary of the NTEU, Mr Ted Murphy called upon the Howard Government to reject the requests. “The requests if granted would make public funding for public secondary schools and universities equally available to foreign and private schools and tertiary campuses” Mr Murphy said.
“This would mean reduced funding for public universities, higher fees for students, and taxpayers subsidising overseas-based commercial providers of education” Mr Murphy said.
Mr Murphy said that in 1994 Australia agreed that transnational providers of secondary and tertiary education should be able to establish campuses here, but without being entitled to be funded as Australian institutions. “We should give no further education commitments in this or any subsequent round of GATS regulations” Mr Murphy said.
For further information:
Ted Murphy (NTEU National Assistant Secretary)0419 517 288