Transcript
TRANSCRIPT OF DOORSTOP OF THE HON DR BRENDAN NELSON MP AT
HIGHER EDUCATION REVIEW FORUM
PARLIAMENT HOUSE, CANBERRA
3 October 2002
NELSON
Today and tomorrow we have a two day symposium here in Canberra at
Parliament House to consider those issues that have been put into the
public arena over the last six months to inform a reform of Australian
higher education. The key priorities for the Government in relation to
universities will be equity, sustainability, quality and, of course,
making sure we have a system that is adequately funded for the future.
JOURNALIST
What do you hope to get out of these two day talk fest that you have
not already got of the submission process?
NELSON
Well the most important thing that we are doing here, is what I have
done is I have brought together the Australian Vice Chancellors Committee,
representatives from different universities the length and breadth of
Australia, Vice Chancellors from some of our larger research intensive
universities and of course those from our smaller universities which are
predominately in the regions of the country. As well as that, people from
business and industry and the broader community, unions and
representatives of students including the president of the National Union
of Students. The purpose of it, is that we have released six discussion
papers plus a monograph on Indigenous participation in higher education. I
have had a reference group with which I have been working directly over
the past six months. We have had a specialist team within the department
put together to consider higher education reform and next week they will
be meeting with State and Territory Education Ministers.
It is important that when you go through a process like this that you
bring the key players together, that people in the different parts of the
sector whilst having a different attitude to different possible policy
prescriptions, I think that it is important that both I and my department
listen to what people have to say, that we consider the choices we have
before us before we sit down and actually write a policy.
JOURNALIST
So you won’t be giving anything away in terms of some of things that
you may already be leaning towards. (Inaudible).
NELSON
Well I think quite rightly the people who have committed much of their
lives to higher education and putting Australia on a sound footing would
be concerned if the Government were to foreshadow what it thinks we might
do before we have actually had the opportunity to listen to if you like
the summation arguments from people within the sector and those who have
concern for it. There are a number of things which of course I have ruled
out which I reiterate today and that is that absolutely nothing will be
done in higher education reform that does anything other than put a solid
financial and educational base under the universities in the regions.
There will not be real interest rates applying to student loans, nor are
we indeed going to come up with a policy prescription which is for a free
unfettered market for higher education. It is important that we realise
that higher education which will be the foundation upon which the 21st
century will be built for Australia will be funded by government, by
student contributions, by industry and private sector investment. What we
have to make sure is that we get the balance of those four contributions
right.
JOURNALIST
Is there any chance of (inaudible) public funding?
NELSON
Well of course all options are on the table. Whether they are
contributions from industry, more private sector investment we’re closely
been examining student contributions and of course the level of public
contribution which is made to Australia’s 38 publicly funded universities.
JOURNALIST
Dr Nelson has the Productivity Commission Report changed your view on
government contributions?
NELSON
Well our view, or my view in relation to higher education has been to
come into this entire reform process with an open mind and I think that
Productivity Commission has made a constructive and informative
contribution to our consideration of the issues. I think it should be
remembered that the request for the Productivity Commission to compare
Australian higher education its governance, management, funding and
administration with other countries and universities in other countries
was one that was requested by me through the Treasurer. I think the
Productivity Commission document is an informative one and obviously it
examines not just government contributions in Australia and Canada, North
America and some other places but also student and private sector
investment.
JOURNALIST
The AVCC have again reinforced their desire (inaudible). Is that
something you will be taking into serious consideration?
NELSON
The Australian Vice Chancellors Committee have put forward four key
pillars for the future of higher education. Their 20/20 vision for higher
education is that Australia should commit 2% of gross domestic product to
higher education. That there should be a centre of research excellence in
each and every university. They have also said that our ambition should be
that higher education is amongst our top three services export earners and
further to that we should be amongst the top five in terms of
participation in higher education throughout the world. I would be
abrogating my responsibilities as the Minister thinking about how
universities are going to serve this country at least for the next thirty
years if I didn’t take seriously the recommendations they put forward. One
of the eight enabling strategies proposed by the Vice Chancellors
themselves is that there should be some degree of limited deregulation of
university fees. They have argued to me privately and publicly that some
fees could be reduced and that other fees could be increased. As with all
of the submissions that have been made to this review, naturally I
consider all of them in earnest.
I said that there were four key priorities for higher education as far
as I am concerned, the government is concerned - and it is equity,
quality, diversity and sustainability. They are the key things. We have
got fundamental challenges to make sure that in the regions of this
country that universities that undertake critically important unrecognised
and unfunded community service obligations in supporting regional
economies and giving access to Australians who would not otherwise see the
inside of the university. That needs to be strengthened, coming out of
this review and at the other end of the spectrum with our larger research
intensive institutions which are predominantly in the capital cities of
Australia, it is clear that they are competing not only with one another,
they are competing with the very best in the world and as the Vice
Chancellors themselves have said – they need some kind of flexibility and
the other key priority for me is how do we as a nation meet the growing
demand for university education in south east Queensland, in Western
Australia, the Peel region north of Perth, outer eastern Melbourne, how do
we do that without meaningful reform? This reform process I can assure you
is about a lot more than money.
JOURNALIST
Is it realistic to aim for 60% of Australians to attend university?
NELSON
The lifetime chance of attending university now, in Australia is 45% as
confirmed and documented again by the Productivity Commission Report. We
know that about 30% of our kids are going directly from school to
university, the life time chance now is 45% and increasing. One thing that
is very important to me as the Minister is to not ever forget that
excellence and human achievement and success comes in all forms and we
should not ever think that the only way in which you become a successful
and fully fulfilled human being is by virtue of university education.
Those students, those Australians, who choose to go to TAFE, who undertake
apprenticeships, who do training and other forms of education and career
choices other than university are just as valuable and important to this
country as those who undertake a university education and whatever targets
we set for participation in university – let’s not in any way suggest that
should become the golden standard of achievement because in my world it
won’t.
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