Labor's commitment gives heart to a beleaguered higher education sector

CAPA welcomes Labor's commitment to restore desperately needed funding to Australia's public university system, and to relieve the unfair burden upon our low-income graduates, announced by Mr Beazley during the ALP election campaign launch this morning.

"Our universities are in desperate trouble after five years of damage and neglect by the Coalition, and this commitment represents the first ray of hope the sector has seen for a long time," said CAPA President John Byron today.

"I said yesterday that Labor's credibility within the sector depended largely on its commitment to restoring basic operating funds, and the ALP's University Improvement Fund is an excellent start down this road.

"Additionally, the commitment to raising the HECS repayment threshold over five years will allow hundreds of thousands of low-income earning graduates to get back on their feet financially," he continued.

The Coalition lowered the HECS repayment threshold to its current level of 58% of the average wage, in complete defiance of the rationale that HECS constitutes a co-payment by people reaping personal financial gain from their education.

"Rich kids whose parents paid their HECS up-front have been quarantined from these measures, but the hardship visited upon ordinary people just trying to get ahead has been extraordinary," said Mr Byron.

"CAPA is also pleased to note that the ALP will discontinue the disgraceful - and possible illegal - practice of the outgoing Education Minister, Dr Kemp, of influencing enterprise bargaining processes by offering the enticement of a partial salary supplementation payment to universities that adopt the Liberals' regressive and Dickensian industrial relations policies," he said.

"Overall, there is a lot of daylight between the unimaginative, elitist and punitive disinvestment regime of the Coalition, and Labor's intelligent, inclusive and enabling higher education policy," observed Mr Byron.

"While we would like to see more of today's proposals funded up-front, and while there is much that remains to be addressed by Labor, we also realise that the Treasurer left the cupboard almost bare with his pork-barrel budget in May," he commented.

"CAPA looks forward to discussing further the many areas that need urgent attention - like postgraduate coursework fees, differential HECS, and problems with Dr Kemp's Research Training Scheme - once Mr Beazley and Mr Lee are in government.

"CAPA encourages all Australians to think about education - the engine room of our future economic, social and environmental prosperity - when casting their votes on election day," concluded Mr Byron.