AUSTRALIAN GREENS' ADDITIONAL
COMMENTS
1.1
The
Australian Greens have long supported the protection of Australia's reputation
as a provider of world class higher education and training. When many
international students were left without either alternative placement or
refunds when a number of providers went out of business, the then Labor
government recruited Bruce Baird to lead a review into the ESOS Legislation.
1.2
The
Baird Review found that there were untenable amounts of risk in the system for
international students. Therefore it recommended a change in regulation and the
creation of a risk management framework to protect international students from
exploitation and being left without either refund or qualification in cases of
provider bankruptcy or market exit.
1.3
To
achieve this it recommended the introduction of the Tuition Protection Service,
which would assist international students to complete their qualification by
finding alternative placement or, at worst, be reimbursed in cases where
providers went out of business.
1.4
The
Education Services for Overseas Students Amendment (Streamlining Regulation)
Bill 2015 would unwind many of the regulations around the Tuition Protection
Scheme that were put in place by the then Labor government in response to the
Baird Review. This includes:
-
the
ending of the requirement of providers to hold student fees in a 'designated
account' until course commencement;
-
the
removal of the 50% cap on the up-front costs that are chargeable for longer
courses;
-
the
removal of the concept of a 'study period'; and
-
lowering
reporting obligations for student defaults
1.5
The
Greens believe that the Minister and the Department of Education are
unwarranted in their increased confidence in the sector. We concur with the
scepticism found in submissions by the NTEU[1],
CAPA[2], the
Tasmania University Union[3]
and the Overseas Student Ombudsman[4].
The NTEU write:
Supporters of the
proposal to remove the designated account and 50% rules as a way of reducing
provider compliance costs and red tape argue that it is justified as the
international sector is more stable than when the current provisions to TPS
were introduced in 2012. While we acknowledge that there have certainly been
improvements, supporters of the changes argue that the RIS is premised on the assumption
that the risk of circumstances (that is, the turmoil the sector experienced
over the period 2008-2011) which was the catalyst for these and other changes
is now very low or non-existent. However, given the recent evidence of
widespread problems within the private vocational sector ... we are concerned
that both the Government and the sector are seriously underestimating the
current levels of provider risk. As such the assumption that it is fine to pull
back on regulatory protections is being made under a false premise.[5]
1.6
Due
to the problems with the VET FEE-HELP scheme, as identified in the recent
Senate Inquiry into the for-profit VET sector[6],
there are more questionable providers than ever. It is the Greens belief that
the Minister has got the order of priorities wrong. The first goal should be to
fix the current problems in the system, and only then to look at the
possibility of increasing student choice or lowering regulatory costs.
1.7
If
the problems with the VET FEE-HELP scheme were to be fixed, it is quite
possible that providers who rely on rorting the VET FEE-HELP system will
struggle to stay afloat. Given that many for-profit providers also have an
international student component to their business model, there is a structural
risk to these international students’ qualification and tuition if there is not
appropriate regulation.
1.8
Given
the problems identified, it is the position of the Australian Greens that now
is not the right time to pursue the deregulatory agenda contained within this
Bill. To do so now would pose too great a risk to both students and Australia’s
international reputation as a world class tertiary education provider.
Recommendation 1: The Australian Greens recommend
that the Senate reject this bill.
Senator Robert Simms
Australian Greens
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