Higher education legislation passed with help of independents

by Peter Mac

The Howard Government managed to push through its higher 
education Bill last week with the help of the four independent 
Senators. The independents did force the Government to back down 
on its proposals relating to the enforcement of individual work 
contracts on staff, an important victory for staff. But, 
unfortunately, the independents accepted the main thrust of the 
Bill's other provisions, in particular, its inadequate funding 
arrangements and increases in student fees. These are grim news 
for students and staff and the future of public education.

The independents claim that they blocked the Government's move to 
increase the permissible proportion of full-fee paying domestic 
students to 50 percent. However, they still accepted a rise to 35 
percent. They also claim that they blocked the Government's move 
to allow universities to raise their fees by 30 percent, but 
allowed a rise of 25 percent.

The President of the National Union of Students, Daniel Kyriacou, 
said that a basic science degree could now cost $20,000, an 
increase of $4000.

As Dr Carolyn Allport, National President of the Tertiary 
Education Union (NTEU) pointed out, these changes "are a 
particular threat to the affordability of a quality university 
education".

Not only is funding inadequate, but changes to the way it is 
allocated favour older "sandstone" universities as against newer 
institutions such as the University of Western Sydney, the 
Australian Maritime College, Victoria University and the 
Victorian College of the Arts.

The University of Western Sydney is expected to be hit so 
drastically by the funding changes that it may have to implement 
campus closures and staff cuts.

Sydney University staff last week took strike action for the 
third time this year, over an enterprise bargaining agreement 
that University management stalled, waiting for the government's 
aggressive industrial relations changes.

The Government has for the moment removed the requirement to 
force universities to use Australian workplace agreements (AWAs) 
for the employment of staff. It has, however, included a clause 
referring to the universities offering AWAs "in accordance with 
the Workplace Relations Act", and is free to return to the issue 
at a later date.

The Government agreed to increase the higher Education 
Contributions Scheme (HECS) threshold (amount of income at which 
repayment of HECS loan commences) to $36,184 (at present 
$24,365). This will not happen until the 2005/6 financial year. 
In the meantime the costs of degrees will rise.

The Government has promised to index funding after 2007! 
Meanwhile the paltry increases offered will be eroded by rising 
prices.

The Government has agreed to review the issue of proper 
indexation of university funding, but has given no guarantee that 
having done so it will take action to rectify the current grossly 
unsatisfactory situation.

The federal Education Minister, Brendan Nelson had previously 
promised that under the new funding arrangements no university 
would be worse off than at present. When it came to voting, the 
independents helped the government defeat an opposition demand 
that the legislation include wording to guarantee this as an 
outcome.

In accepting the legislation, albeit modified, they also accepted 
the principal that the government can use funding as a means to 
interfere with the operations of universities.

The independent Senators Harradine, Murphy, Harris and Lees claim 
to have effectively reversed the adverse effects of the 
legislation. In reality, universities will be forced to make 
serious staffing and course cuts, raise fees and seek corporate 
sponsorship — all steps towards privatisation.

The main thrust of the Government's user-pays agenda remains in 
tact. Higher education in Australia would have far better 
prospects if this appalling legislation had been defeated in its 
entirety.