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Students protest funding cuts
University students have rallied nationally against the federal government’ s plan of slashing more than $ 2 billion from the tertiary sector. By Aileen Macalintal
The National Union of Students has organised a series of actions against the Gillard government’ s plan to cut billion-dollar funding from higher education to fund national school reforms.
More than a thousand students across Australia joined the NUS national day of action on May 14, said Clare Keyes-Liley, NUS education officer.
Over the past few weeks in Melbourne, about 300 people have rallied at RMIT, while 100 students gathered at the University of New South Wales’ Kensington campus, and 100 at the University of Technology Sydney.
Brisbane also saw 150 to 200 students who joined the action, while 100 students gathered in Adelaide, 100 in Tasmania, 100 in Canberra, and over 200 across Perth campuses.
At the rally in Brisbane Square, National Tertiary Education Union Queensland division president, Andrew Bonnell, discussed the increasing pressures on universities, including mounting teacher casualisation, worsening student-staff ration, and growing workload pressures.
NTEU members and students also staged protests at Curtin University, Murdoch University, the University of Western Australia and Edith Cowan University.
“ Our position is that the Gonski reform is extremely important,” NUS president Jade Tyrrell said,“ But we’ re very shocked and appalled when the announcement was made that the funding for this will come from universities and the higher education sector.”
“ Unfortunately, the cuts proposed by the federal government will have an extremely negative impact on all university students,” said Tyrrell.
“ We’ re very concerned that cost cuts and support services and the quality of
10 | May 2013 our education will suffer,” she said. Tyrrell said the efficiency dividends will affect current students in terms of the decisions that the universities have to make. She argued that“ efficiency” is just another word for cutting and cost saving and will have a direct impact on the ground.
She believed NSW’ s signing up for the school reforms was unfortunate, saying premiers must consider that agreeing to Gonski in this way will involve cuts to universities.
She said taking from one form of education to fund another does not make sense.“ Public funding to all forms of education should be increased and not be attacked.”
Professor Fred Hilmer, University of New South Wales vice-chancellor and chair of the G08, said the cuts were“ a bitterly disappointing, shortsighted move on the part of a government which claims education as one of its highest priorities”.
He said providing students with a better education at school by providing a worse experience at university is absurd.
“ This is an issue where staff, students and the administration are as one in their concern about the potential effect of these cuts on our universities and the quality of the experience we can offer our students.”
Hilmer said they hope the government will listen to their concerns.
Universities have already expanded the number of student places under the government’ s demand driven system, which has been reviewed as inadequate. In UNSW’ s case, 35 per cent more students have been given places.
“ It is also cynical when the government has imposed an unnecessary financial burden on universities through excessive
regulation and compliance costs,” he said.
“ The sector has repeatedly called on the government to reduce excessive red tape, which would provide major benefits in terms of an efficiency dividend – but it’ s fallen on deaf ears.”
Professor Colin Stirling, deputy
Curtin University deputy vice-chancellor, professor Colin Stirling
vice-chancellor of Curtin University, also showed support.
“ We respect students’ rights to protest against issues that impact them and understand why students are actively protesting against the federal government’ s funding cuts,” Stirling said.
He said the cuts will affect WA students.“ Any increase to the cost of education to students has a very significant impact on WA students given the higher cost of living in Western Australia,” Stirling said.
He said the cuts to Curtin’ s funding are estimated to be approximately $ 5 million in 2014 and $ 8.5 million in 2015.
“ Curtin supports Universities Australia’ s Smartest Investment campaign which aims to tell our political leaders that investing in our universities is investing in Australia’ s future – and that any cuts threaten that future.”
The NTEU’ s national president Jeannie Rea said,“ Since 2011, the government has slashed $ 4 billion from higher education federal budget allocations. We will be calling for restoration of the latest cuts.” n