WILL INDEXATION REVIEW TELL THE GOVERNMENT ONLY WHAT IT WANTS TO HEAR?
29 November 2004
The Government’s decision not to hold a public review of the indexation arrangements for university funding means it will take place without the vital input of the people who run and work in our universities, the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) said on Monday.
“The NTEU agrees with Australia’s university vice chancellors that we cannot have any confidence in a review that is undertaken only within the confines of the Department of Education Science and Training,” said Dr Carolyn Allport, NTEU President.
“The Government’s higher education legislation only provided a quick fix for the funding problems facing the sector, it did not deal with the real underlying financial pressures.”
“In a document released last week, the Australian Vice Chancellors Committee publicly admitted for the first time that without improved indexation universities will approach the end of the Government’s Backing Australia’s Future package in 2008 with few alternatives to meet funding shortfalls other than increases in student fees.”
“Our major concern is that by making it an in-house affair the Education Minister is setting the stage for a review that will only tell the Government what it wants to hear, that the present indexation arrangements are satisfactory, whereas the complete opposite is true.”
“The entire higher education sector agrees that the lack of a realistic indexation mechanism reflecting real increases in wage and other operating costs is the number one issue facing our universities, and that if this problem is not tackled it threatens to undermine the quality of teaching and research.”
“The funding crunch facing our universities was highlighted by the Productivity Commission’s recently released report, Economic Implications of an Ageing Australia, which showed that between 1995 and 2001 real funding per publicly subsidised university student fell from $10,030 to $8,133, a decline of approximately 26%.”
“HECS fees have doubled since 1996, and while universities need greater investment in order to ensure quality and retain talented staff, this must not be at the continued expense of students and their families,” said Dr Allport. “The current review is a vital chance for the Government to get indexation right and, as such, would benefit from as much informed debate and input from the higher education sector as possible.”
“The NTEU calls on the Government to immediately make all paperwork pertaining to the review public in time for the sector to make informed comment before a final decision is made on this urgent matter in February 2005.”
Information and Comment:
Andrew Nette, NTEU Policy and Research Coordinator: (03) 9254 1910
Paul Kniest, NTEU Policy and Research Officer: (03) 9254 1910