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Media Release
MORE THAN $200 MILLION EXTRA FOR AUSTRALIA’S UNIVERSITIES
28 November, 2003 MIN 542/03
I am today announcing further enhancements to the Government’s university reforms which will inject more than $200 million in additional funds into the package.
This will bring the total value of the package on offer to some $1.6 billion over four years and more than $2.4 billion over the next five years.
The new measures provide for:
- The raising of the HECS repayment threshold to $33,150
- Doubling of the number of growth places from 1,400 to 2,800 – an additional cost of $30 million
- Approximately $90 million for an additional 7500 accommodation scholarships targeted to poorer students from rural areas
- Approximately $23 million for the Australian Maritime College and the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education in recognition of their status as National Institutes that serve specific communities
- Approximately $8 million to support students with disabilities
- Approximately $8 million to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds
- Approximately $50 million to support educationally disadvantaged students undertaking enabling courses
- Approximately $12 million to upgrade the University of Tasmania medical school
Australia’s universities are in desperate need of reform. They are on a collision course with mediocrity. The Government’s Backing Australia’s Future package provides the solution. It now includes:
- An additional $404 million in base funding
- $122 million over four years to support regional campuses
- $121 million in new funding to support teaching and nursing programmes
- Approximately 25,000 fully funded places replacing marginally funded places
- Over 9,000 new fully funded places for universities over the next five years, including for medicine, teaching and nursing
- Approximately $250 million in scholarships, worth up to $24,000 each, to assist students with education and accommodation costs
- $188 million to support teaching and learning, including a National Institute for Learning and Teaching
- new loan schemes to assist those students who choose to pay the full cost of their education, and those wanting to spend a semester or two studying overseas
- Approximately $90 million to support a range of equity initiatives, including funding for indigenous students, students with disabilities and those from disadvantaged backgrounds
- $55 million to support workplace productivity in universities
- $36 million to support collaboration and structural reform
It is critical that this reform package is passed this year to enable Universities to begin to implement the changes and accommodate additional students from 2005.
I urge the Senate to pass the reforms.
Media contact:
Dr Nelson’s Office: Ross Hampton 0419 484 095
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