Thursday 23 June 2016

Not to be trusted on higher education

The Department of Education has refused to provide access to modelling the department has done on the impact of fee deregulation on university students and the higher education sector.
The Department of Education has refused to provide access to modelling the department has done on the impact of fee deregulation on university students and the higher education sector.

The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) submitted a freedom of information request, asking the department for question time briefs, spreadsheets of potential fees by course, an assessment of the impact of deregulation on regional higher education and modelling relating to graduates in 2019.
The request was knocked back.
NTEU national president Jeannie Rea said 
“Is it because the Turnbull government doesn't want voters to know that their own numbers confirm fee deregulation will lead to $100,000 degrees? Or is it because full deregulation isn’t really off the table at all?”
The Coalition government failed in its attempts to introduce full fee deregulation for the higher education sector in the previous parliament, but it still intends to introduce partial deregulation if re-elected on July 2.
The education minister Simon Birmingham has refused to release a higher education policy prior to the election. Instead, the government has released a “discussion paper”, and said it has plans to consult the sector.
The paper presents a number of options including partial deregulation and changes to the way that student loans are repaid.
During the Facebook leaders' debate, Malcolm Turnbull accidentally let slip that it was indeed Coalition policy to partially deregulate the sector. No consultation necessary apparently?
They simply cannot be trusted!

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