
Student debt to be slashed, less cash deducted from pay
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare will introduce legislation to slash student debt by 20 per cent and increase the income that graduates need to earn before minimum repayments kick in.
It's the first bill that the Albanese government will put before parliament at the start of its second term.
People earning between $60,000 and $180,000 will save hundreds of dollars each year under the changes.
Someone on $70,000 will save the most, $1300 a year, on minimum repayments due to an increase to the thresholds at which the debts must be paid back.
Savings vary between incomes in the bracket, with people pocketing anywhere from $200 to $850.
Bruce Chapman said it would make it fairer by giving those on lower salaries more money in their pockets, while their debts remain the same in nominal terms.
"It looks bigger, in real terms it's not bigger," the architect of the HECS scheme told AAP.
But the top priority should be reviewing the price of each degree because humanities students finish with the highest level of debt and end up being the lowest-paid graduates.
"All the prices are wrong," Professor Chapman said.
Mr Clare said reforms were being looked at, after the failure of the former Liberal government's job ready program.
The program aimed to fill skills shortages by making it cheaper to study courses like teaching, nursing and psychology while doubling the cost of popular degrees including law, communications, business, humanities and the arts.
"If the intention there was to reduce the number of people doing arts degrees, it hasn't worked," Mr Clare said.
"People study the courses they're interested in, that they want to do, that they love."
The universities accord final report branded the program "deeply unfair" because it punished students following their interest, and called for it to be scrapped.
It recommended that fees reflect future earning potential, as part of 47 recommendations to reform the sector.
Other aspects about how HECS is paid off also needed to be addressed, Prof Chapman said.
HECS repayments are taken from a person's pay slip if they're earning above an income threshold.
But the money isn't immediately taken off the HECS debt and is instead deducted as a lump sum at the end of the financial year after indexation has been applied on June 1.
This means a higher debt is indexed as the repayments haven't been deducted and the university accord recommended it be reformed to make the system fairer.
The Australian Tertiary Education Commission has been established in an interim capacity to implement long-term university reform and will review the HECS system over the next 12 months.
Mr Clare will introduce further legislation in the coming months to set the commission up as a permanent body.
Students and graduates will soon see a reduction in their HECS debts and save hundreds of dollars a year.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare will introduce legislation to slash student debt by 20 per cent and increase the income that graduates need to earn before minimum repayments kick in.
It's the first bill that the Albanese government will put before parliament at the start of its second term.
People earning between $60,000 and $180,000 will save hundreds of dollars each year under the changes.
Someone on $70,000 will save the most, $1300 a year, on minimum repayments due to an increase to the thresholds at which the debts must be paid back.
Savings vary between incomes in the bracket, with people pocketing anywhere from $200 to $850.
Bruce Chapman said it would make it fairer by giving those on lower salaries more money in their pockets, while their debts remain the same in nominal terms.
"It looks bigger, in real terms it's not bigger," the architect of the HECS scheme told AAP.
But the top priority should be reviewing the price of each degree because humanities students finish with the highest level of debt and end up being the lowest-paid graduates.
"All the prices are wrong," Professor Chapman said.
Mr Clare said reforms were being looked at, after the failure of the former Liberal government's job ready program.
The program aimed to fill skills shortages by making it cheaper to study courses like teaching, nursing and psychology while doubling the cost of popular degrees including law, communications, business, humanities and the arts.
"If the intention there was to reduce the number of people doing arts degrees, it hasn't worked," Mr Clare said.
"People study the courses they're interested in, that they want to do, that they love."
The universities accord final report branded the program "deeply unfair" because it punished students following their interest, and called for it to be scrapped.
It recommended that fees reflect future earning potential, as part of 47 recommendations to reform the sector.
Other aspects about how HECS is paid off also needed to be addressed, Prof Chapman said.
HECS repayments are taken from a person's pay slip if they're earning above an income threshold.
But the money isn't immediately taken off the HECS debt and is instead deducted as a lump sum at the end of the financial year after indexation has been applied on June 1.
This means a higher debt is indexed as the repayments haven't been deducted and the university accord recommended it be reformed to make the system fairer.
The Australian Tertiary Education Commission has been established in an interim capacity to implement long-term university reform and will review the HECS system over the next 12 months.
Mr Clare will introduce further legislation in the coming months to set the commission up as a permanent body.
Students and graduates will soon see a reduction in their HECS debts and save hundreds of dollars a year.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare will introduce legislation to slash student debt by 20 per cent and increase the income that graduates need to earn before minimum repayments kick in.
It's the first bill that the Albanese government will put before parliament at the start of its second term.
People earning between $60,000 and $180,000 will save hundreds of dollars each year under the changes.
Someone on $70,000 will save the most, $1300 a year, on minimum repayments due to an increase to the thresholds at which the debts must be paid back.
Savings vary between incomes in the bracket, with people pocketing anywhere from $200 to $850.
Bruce Chapman said it would make it fairer by giving those on lower salaries more money in their pockets, while their debts remain the same in nominal terms.
"It looks bigger, in real terms it's not bigger," the architect of the HECS scheme told AAP.
But the top priority should be reviewing the price of each degree because humanities students finish with the highest level of debt and end up being the lowest-paid graduates.
"All the prices are wrong," Professor Chapman said.
Mr Clare said reforms were being looked at, after the failure of the former Liberal government's job ready program.
The program aimed to fill skills shortages by making it cheaper to study courses like teaching, nursing and psychology while doubling the cost of popular degrees including law, communications, business, humanities and the arts.
"If the intention there was to reduce the number of people doing arts degrees, it hasn't worked," Mr Clare said.
"People study the courses they're interested in, that they want to do, that they love."
The universities accord final report branded the program "deeply unfair" because it punished students following their interest, and called for it to be scrapped.
It recommended that fees reflect future earning potential, as part of 47 recommendations to reform the sector.
Other aspects about how HECS is paid off also needed to be addressed, Prof Chapman said.
HECS repayments are taken from a person's pay slip if they're earning above an income threshold.
But the money isn't immediately taken off the HECS debt and is instead deducted as a lump sum at the end of the financial year after indexation has been applied on June 1.
This means a higher debt is indexed as the repayments haven't been deducted and the university accord recommended it be reformed to make the system fairer.
The Australian Tertiary Education Commission has been established in an interim capacity to implement long-term university reform and will review the HECS system over the next 12 months.
Mr Clare will introduce further legislation in the coming months to set the commission up as a permanent body.
Students and graduates will soon see a reduction in their HECS debts and save hundreds of dollars a year.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare will introduce legislation to slash student debt by 20 per cent and increase the income that graduates need to earn before minimum repayments kick in.
It's the first bill that the Albanese government will put before parliament at the start of its second term.
People earning between $60,000 and $180,000 will save hundreds of dollars each year under the changes.
Someone on $70,000 will save the most, $1300 a year, on minimum repayments due to an increase to the thresholds at which the debts must be paid back.
Savings vary between incomes in the bracket, with people pocketing anywhere from $200 to $850.
Bruce Chapman said it would make it fairer by giving those on lower salaries more money in their pockets, while their debts remain the same in nominal terms.
"It looks bigger, in real terms it's not bigger," the architect of the HECS scheme told AAP.
But the top priority should be reviewing the price of each degree because humanities students finish with the highest level of debt and end up being the lowest-paid graduates.
"All the prices are wrong," Professor Chapman said.
Mr Clare said reforms were being looked at, after the failure of the former Liberal government's job ready program.
The program aimed to fill skills shortages by making it cheaper to study courses like teaching, nursing and psychology while doubling the cost of popular degrees including law, communications, business, humanities and the arts.
"If the intention there was to reduce the number of people doing arts degrees, it hasn't worked," Mr Clare said.
"People study the courses they're interested in, that they want to do, that they love."
The universities accord final report branded the program "deeply unfair" because it punished students following their interest, and called for it to be scrapped.
It recommended that fees reflect future earning potential, as part of 47 recommendations to reform the sector.
Other aspects about how HECS is paid off also needed to be addressed, Prof Chapman said.
HECS repayments are taken from a person's pay slip if they're earning above an income threshold.
But the money isn't immediately taken off the HECS debt and is instead deducted as a lump sum at the end of the financial year after indexation has been applied on June 1.
This means a higher debt is indexed as the repayments haven't been deducted and the university accord recommended it be reformed to make the system fairer.
The Australian Tertiary Education Commission has been established in an interim capacity to implement long-term university reform and will review the HECS system over the next 12 months.
Mr Clare will introduce further legislation in the coming months to set the commission up as a permanent body.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Sky News AU
10 minutes ago
- Sky News AU
Former prime minister Scott Morrison warns China's recent 'charm and flattery' masks long-term ill intent
Former prime minister Scott Morrison has told a United States congressional committee China's recent "charm and flattery" masks long-term ill intent, in a pointed warning about economic coercion. Mr Morrison was invited to testify before the US House select committee on the Chinese Communist Party on Wednesday, local time, in order to offer insight into how Australia dealt with hostility from Beijing. In 2020, the former prime minister led calls for an inquiry into the origins of Covid-19, sparking a backlash from Beijing which resulted in trade restrictions worth billions of dollars. The election of the Albanese government in 2022 has since resulted in those sanctions being unwound, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese seeking to normalise ties and encourage economic cooperation. However, Mr Morrison warned the thaw in relations should not be taken as a sign China had abandoned its coercive tactics. "After the failure of the CCP's coercive efforts to break our resolve, the PRC (People's Republic of China) took advantage of the change in government following the 2022 federal election to effect a reset and adopt a different set of tactics," he told the committee. "This included abandoning their economic and diplomatic bullying and coercion for more inductive engagement laced with charm and flattery. "That said, the PRC still continues to engage in intimidatory behaviour by their military against Australia when it suits them, without remorse. "While the CCP's tactics may have substantially changed, their objectives remain the same." Mr Morrison warned that although Beijing had adopted a more conciliatory tone, which was on full display during Mr Albanese's recent visit, China remained determined to "neutralise" public support for government actions countering their activities and to overtake the US as the dominant force in the Indo-Pacific. As a result, the former prime minister argued the US and its allies must "never become casual about the potential threat" posed by Beijing and called for more work to deepen partnerships in the region aimed at limiting China's influence. Mr Morrison's testimony was in contrast to the tone Mr Albanese had used throughout his recent visit to Beijing. The Prime Minister had been keen to talk up the importance of Australia's economic partnership throughout his trip, saying he wished to see an increase in investment from both countries. Mr Albanese also spruiked a new tourism campaign which aimed to encourage Chinese citizens to holiday in Australia. In his remarks to the US congressional committee, Mr Morrison suggested such an approach played directly into Beijing's hands. "Recently the Lowy Institute completed a survey which found for the first time in quite a number of years there is a greater value on the economic partnership with China than concerns about the security threat," he said. "That is an objective of the CCP, that Western democracies will go to sleep on the threat."

AU Financial Review
3 hours ago
- AU Financial Review
PM lifts US beef ban, paves way for Trump tariff talks
The Albanese government has lifted the biosecurity restrictions on US beef, paving the way for the full resumption of exports to Australia, and removing the key excuse given by the Trump administration for imposing steep tariffs on its supposed friend and ally. A government source, speaking on condition of anonymity, insisted the move, which was communicated to the US government overnight Wednesday (AEST), was based on scientific advice following a review of the restrictions initiated more than 18 months ago, before Donald Trump was elected president for a second term.

Sky News AU
4 hours ago
- Sky News AU
'Bunch of drunken sailors': Sky News host Steve Price scorns Labor's 'crazy' spending as NDIS budget exceeds defence by a billion
Sky News host Steve Price has hit out at Labor's 'crazy' spending as the NDIS budget overshadows defence while more than half the nation relies on some form of government subsidy. Price said the Albanese government was rightly happy to have won the federal election, but now needed to get the country 'back on track'. A report by the Centre for Independent Studies which found more than half of Australian voters rely on government for most of their income - through wages, benefits or subsidies - was proof of the major challenges ahead, he claimed. 'We have become a nation of leaners, not leaders, and I hate to say that,' Price said. 'We have continued to swamp the country with unprecedented numbers of migrants. We have workers relying on governments for their pay packets. That grows alarmingly.' CIS economist Robert Carling warned such widespread dependence has fuelled unsustainable government spending and eroded economic resilience. In a new paper published on Wednesday, Leviathan on the Rampage, Mr Carling warned federal spending alone has reached 27.6 per cent of GDP. This was up from between 24 and 25 per cent of GDP in 2012-13 and has been fuelled by a 'program expansion in social services, defence and debt interest'. 'How can that be sustainable?' Price said. 'According to that report, spending is driven largely by a small group of programmes including - surprise surprise - the NDIS, Aged Care, Medicare and Defence. The NDIS is actually costing taxpayers more than what we spend on defence. How crazy is that? This year alone, $52 billion on the NDIS. 'Simply not sustainable.' Australia's current defence budget is $51 billion. Price said the Labor government was 'spending like a bunch of drunken sailors'. According to the federal budget 2025-26, the NDIS recorded the second highest annual growth in major payments, behind only interest. It has been projected to cost more than $64 billion by the end of the decade. Meanwhile, the federal budget has been projected to endure a decade of deficits and surge past $1 trillion of debt. The findings come just days after leaked Treasury advice revealed the Albanese government has been told to pursue 'spending reductions'. Treasury said Treasurer Jim Chalmers would need to find 'additional revenue and spending reductions' to ensure a 'sustainable budget'.