HELP changes, listening tour, Shaping Australia Awards: Latest rundown of higher education

From our Chief Executive Officer

We are well and truly in election season! The Labor Party kicked off its re-election campaign last weekend by announcing major changes to HELP in a clear signal to students and graduates that the Government is aware of the cost-of-living pressures they’re facing.

UA has welcomed the reforms, to be legislated as a priority if Labor wins the next election. Any move to make student debt repayments fairer is a positive step, sending a strong message that university is a good and affordable option for Australians. This is so important as we seek to educate more people to meet Australia’s future economic, technological and social needs.?

While the changes are a step in the right direction, we will continue to urge the Government to consider the overall cost of degrees. It was encouraging to hear Minister Jason Clare MP speaking this week about the future ATEC having responsibility for this very issue.

With the weeks running out before the end of the year, there is a lot to fit in! I met with Jillian S. , the Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism in Australia, earlier this week. It was a very productive discussion, particularly with regard to how UA can coordinate sector-wide engagement to assist Ms Segal on key issues including a definition of antisemitism and the development of training modules. I’ll provide a more fulsome update at our Plenary next week on this important matter.

This week, we also learned more about the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights’ inquiry into antisemitism at Australian universities. The terms of reference are not too dissimilar to the last inquiry conducted by the Senate, with new submissions due before Christmas. The committee will also be conducting hearings between now and the end of January. UA will be appearing on behalf of the sector later this month.?

It has been a busy week in Canberra with the lower house sitting and Senate estimates in session. We have been closely monitoring the sessions – a high-level summary of the key issues has been distributed to members for your reference.

With the Senate not sitting this week, there was obviously no movement on key bills for our sector. All eyes are now on the final sitting fortnight, starting 18 November, when the Government will seek to pass the ESOS bill along with legislation to give effect to the National Student Ombudsman and the student support measures announced in this year’s federal budget.

As we end the week, I’m writing to you from Sydney where I have been today visiting colleagues at The University of Notre Dame Australia and Western Sydney University . I was also able to see John Dewar, AO and the team at the 澳大利亚卧龙岗大学 yesterday as I race toward the end of my listening tour.

At UoW, I was fortunate to meet some of the finalists in this year’s Shaping Australia Awards, including the talented team empowering regional businesses to thrive and a remarkable individual whose vision to build inclusive playgrounds for young adults with disabilities is coming to life. These are just a couple of examples of why our universities matter, not just to those of us lucky to be working in this wonderful sector, but to all Australians!

I’ll leave it there for today. I’m very much ready for a restful weekend and I’m sure all of you are, too. We are earning it! Enjoy.

Luke Sheehy

Chief Executive Officer, Universities Australia