ALP ANNOUNCES A NEW DIRECTION FOR HIGHER EDUCATION POLICY
July 21, 2006
The Opposition Deputy Leader and Shadow Minister for Education, Ms Jenny Macklin, today released an ALP White Paper on Higher Education policy entitled Australia’s Universities: Building our Future in the World. The Paper sets out principles underlying a new policy direction and also provides a number of policy alternatives in specific areas such as student fees, student income support, quality assurance and funding for universities.
“The release of the White Paper is timely because cuts to Government investment and increased interference in the day to day operations of Australian public universities over the last two decades have presented a real threat to the future quality and sustainability of our higher education sector,” Dr Carolyn Allport, NTEU National President, said today
“Investment in higher education not only provides private benefits to graduates through higher income levels but also ensures that public universities play a critical role in securing Australia’s future economic prosperity through increased productivity and innovative capacity. Public universities are also important social and cultural institutions.”
In addition to setting out a new direction of higher education policy under a Labor government, the NTEU is reassured by ALP’s commitments that their policy will:
- abolish full-fee undergraduate places for Australian students ensuring that entry into university is based on merit and not capacity to pay,
- remove the workplace relations and governance requirements for university funding,
- guarantee that there will be no ‘teaching only’ public universities,
- alleviate the impact of high student fees and debt levels, as well as improve student income support measures,
- restore student advocacy and support services through independent student bodies,
- reduce the level of direct government interference and introduce strong institutional accountabilities, and
- introduce a more flexible funding model for public universities together with a guarantee of increased public funding and more appropriate indexation of government grants.
“The White Paper makes a substantial and positive contribution to debate on the future of higher education and addresses the critical issue of ensuring that public universities are able to continue to offer high quality education and research.”
“The Union questions whether current government market policies and their highly interventionist regulatory framework provides the right incentives to encourage and support universities to build on their natural advantages and strengths.”
“We will also be seeking assurances from the ALP that any new policies, especially those in relation to quality standards and funding do not undermine the important defining characteristics of universities, namely those of peer review, institutional autonomy and academic freedom.”
“NTEU looks forward to participating in the policy debate and encourages other interested parties to do likewise,” Dr Allport concluded.
Information and Comment:
Dr Carolyn Allport, National President, Ph: (03) 9254 1910
Paul Kniest, Policy and Research Officer, Ph: (03) 9254 1910