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Budget dust up
Announcement for 2015 – 16 leaves many in sector craving certainty and additional funding.
By Andrew Bracey and Antonia Maiolo
Universities have expressed dismay at ongoing uncertainty over reforms to higher education and cuts to research programs following the federal Budget’ s recent unveiling.
In its budget response, Universities Australia was quick to note the“ lack of progress through the Parliament of the Government’ s Higher Education Research and Reform Amendment Bill 2014”, which UA chief executive Belinda Robinson said had limited the ability of universities to advise those considering enrolling in 2016 with any certainty.
“ For 12 months, universities and students have been in a holding pattern of policy uncertainty,” Robinson said.“ In the interests of students having the information they need to make one of the most important
decisions of their lives, the future of the bill must be addressed as a matter of urgency.”
Of more immediate concern though, Robinson said, was the budget announcement of a $ 263 million cut to the Sustainable Research Excellence( SRE) program, which she described as vital for meeting the indirect costs of research. The cuts are to pay for two years of the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy( NCRIS).
“ Given the magnitude of the contribution to fiscal rectitude already made by the sector in recent years, and the number of non-university users of NCRIS facilities – including business and state governments – there can be no justification for the financial burden to be borne exclusively by universities,” Robinson said.
University of Melbourne higher education lecturer Dr Emmaline Bexley echoed Robinson’ s concerns over the SRE cuts, which she described as“ sleight of hand” by the government.
“ The $ 250 million [ SRE ] program has been diverted to fund the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure
Strategy that was slated to lose $ 150 million in funding last year,” Bexley told Campus Review.“ That was a sticking point for the Senate in getting fee deregulation through. It’ s a bit of a sleight of hand – it’ s taking a large amount of money from one research scheme and diverting it into another research scheme. So overall, it’ s a loss.
“ Deregulation remains on the books despite two failed attempts to pass the Senate. In all, it’ s another year of uncertainty for universities and students and a bad day for researchers.”
According to the National Tertiary Education Union( NTEU), the flow-on effects of fee deregulation would result in more than just industry uncertainty.
NTEU national president Jeannie Rea re-stated the union’ s long-held concerns over the prospect of deregulation leading to more $ 100,000 degrees. Rea argued that the government’ s“ arrogance” in pushing ahead with its plans would further damage the public university system, which she added was already set to suffer from further cuts to research dollars.
Greens education spokeswoman Lee Rhiannon said the Coalition had failed to learn the lessons of its failed attempts at deregulating fees and warned that universities were still set to face cuts to fund private education providers.
“ Instead of developing a new plan to build up higher education in Australia, the government has squibbed it and simply [ copied ] and pasted last year’ s failed proposals into this year’ s budget,” Rhiannon said.
In his budget response, Labor leader Bill Shorten pledged that – if elected to govern – his party would write off the HECS debt of 100,000 science, technology, engineering and mathematics students, whilst also encouraging“ more women to study, teach and work in these fields”.
“ We need to offer the most powerful incentive to Australians thinking about studying science and technology – a good job,” Shorten said.“ A career in science does not just mean a lifetime in a lab coat; it means opening doors in every facet and field of our national commercial life.”
The education minister, Christopher Pyne, laughed off the plan. Pyne said a conservative cost estimate – from his department – for the HECS write off would be about $ 2.25 billion. He also challenged Shorten“ to explain who will be the losers under his policy”. n
Please see“ Budget stew”, page 12.
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