There continues to be a lot of discussion about the future of tertiary education in Australia. Should fees be deregulated, places capped, interest on student loans charged at the bond rate? And on, and…
The Dawkins reforms to higher education in 1989 saw the creation of HECS and arguably the biggest shake-up of higher education the country had seen - but how did it come about?
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The release of the 1988-89 cabinet documents show that the Hawke government’s plans for Australian higher education were in some ways as radical as the policies that Education Minister Christopher Pyne…
Together with the government, the banking sector could play a role in easing the transition for mining workers.
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A decade of strong mining revenue growth has seen workers disproportionately located in the “mining states” of Queensland and Western Australia. With mining investment now waning, workers drawn by in the…
I love the free market. It means my morning cup of coffee costs roughly the same at almost all the coffee shops near campus. The free market is however ruthlessly efficient, even if it is largely responsible…
Our treasurer Joe Hockey is looking to cut the budget and where possible create a user-pays approach to spending. Universities and their graduates are an obvious target. In Australia we have the quite…
The idea of adding student income support to their HELP debt has been floated, but student debt is already high.
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A Grattan Institute report I co-authored highlights student debt costs, with the finding that the government could save $800 million a year by retrieving unpaid debts from deceased estates and students…
Would selling the student loan debt really be such a bad thing?
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The cost of the national student loan debt held by the federal government has gathered pace to pop the A$30 billion mark, perpetuating rumours that a debt sale could be on the cards. Should that happen…
Higher education costs money, so someone always has to pay.
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After some speculation, this week education minister Christopher Pyne has said the Coalition has no plans to increase university fees. His comments come after much debate over selling the HELP – formerly…
Potential changes to the ownership of student loan repayments could make reform of the system more complicated.
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According to the budget papers, Australian students and former students could owe the government more than $40 billion in unpaid Higher Education Loan Program debt by 2017. Unsurprisingly, HELP, formerly…
Education Minister Christopher Pyne has flagged the possibility of selling off Australia’s HECS debt to help raise funds for the government.
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Education Minister Christopher Pyne has confirmed the government is considering securitising Australia’s HECS debt, and has referred the issue to the Commission of Audit. This has immediately attracted…
Student debt levels are at a record high, a Grattan Institute report has found.
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The architect of Australia’s student loan system has poured cold water on a report highlighting record levels of student debt, saying he would not be surprised if a fifth of all student debt was never…
Police struggle with students as they try to break into the British Conservative Party Headquarters in London during a demonstration against raising of caps on student tuition fees in 2010.
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Today’s proposal by the Grattan Institute for higher education students to pay more will be viewed by many as unfair and unreasonable, says Australian National University Professor Bruce Chapman. “No one…
The HECS black hole has reached $450 million.
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Australian university graduates who move overseas to work for long periods have deprived the country of about $450 million in unpaid HECS debts since the payment scheme was introduced in 1989, according…