“Unis are not Centrelink offices”: Coalition’s pitch to university leaders

The Coalition would scrap Australian Tertiary Education Commission (ATEC) and have an independent tribunal decide vice-chancellor pay, opposition education spokeswoman Senator Sarah Henderson told universities on Wednesday. Reinstating the 50 per cent pass rate rule and significantly capping overseas students to inner-city Sydney and Melbourne unis are also top of the list. The senator outlined her party's priorities for the first time at the Universities Australia Solutions Summit, a meeting of university leaders, which also facilitated discussion within the sector about current issues. The Coalition is adamant that "Australian students must come first" in every decision universities make, but that direction would come from vice-chancellors and a regulator, not government policy, she said. "To put students first, universities must be governed by strong and principled leaders who run their institutions efficiently, transparently and with integrity," she said. "Universities must be able to operate with certainty and plan for the long term, free from day-to-day government intervention and policy chaos; overseen by a tough and feared regulator, which enforces the highest standards when required." An LNP government will cancel the establishment of ATEC, and instead the Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency (TEQSA) would be the responsible regulator. "This is another layer of education bureaucracy and a significant cost which will not take our universities forward. It certainly does not add value to students," she said. Senator Henderson said things like scholarships and student support funds, which ATEC has been tasked with reviewing, is work for government and ministers. "The ATEC tells us this government doesn't know what to do. There's no proper understanding of its role, no legislation. And yet it is set to commence in three months time," she said. "The hard work you would expect a government to undertake is being sent to the Commission." Her party would assess changes to funds such as the Higher Education Partnerships and Participation Program and the Indigenous Students Support Fund by asking the following questions: "Do they support quality of teaching and learning? Labour market needs? Equity access so all Australians can aspire to university education? Student completion rates and employment outcomes?" The LNP previously announced it would increase the number of Commonwealth-supported places for medial students by 100 in 2026 and 2027, and by 150 from 2028, an Accord-recommended policy. The party has not changed its position on Job-Ready Graduates, she said, but it will review the funding arrangement. Although the senator welcomed the Universities Accord final report's recommendations, she said the Albanese government has unfairly placed the burden of reform onto individuals and universities. She said Education Minister Jason Clare has "outsourced much of the heavy lifting" to Accord chair Professor Mary O'Kane and her panel. She also said universities should not bear the burden of means-testing students, in other words, evaluating whether a student is eligible for government support regarding the Commonwealth prac payment. "Consider, for instance, the prac payments: discretionary grant programs where you are being asked to means-test students. Universities are not Centrelink offices," she said. "We understand that universities are big and complex organizations, but they have not enjoyed a strong track record always in supporting students. Too many times students have been left high and dry." She also said TEQSA has not done enough to protect women from sexual violence on campus or Jewish students and staff from anti-Semitism. "A Dutton government would adopt zero-tolerance of anti-Semitism on university campuses. We will not wait for universities to act in their own time," she said. The senator told universities they need to do more to stop anti-Semitism on campuses. Picture: UA "We expect all universities to fully cooperate with the new dedicated anti-Semitism Task Force, led by the Australian Federal Police and other agencies." All Australian vice-chancellors agreed on a definition of anti-Semitism on Wednesday. While the senator said she appreciated the vice-chancellors agreement, the Coalition would require unis to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition, which is a more robust framework and definition, she said. The Coalition would implement a national higher education code to prevent and respond to anti-Semitism and establish a judicial inquiry into anti-Semitism at Australian universities, she announced. "We will leave no stone unturned, including amending the Fair Work Act if necessary." Another LNP priority is to reinstate the 50 per cent pass rate rule, she said. "We don't believe there are enough safeguards to protect struggling students from leaving university with no qualification and a large student debt," she said. The Accord final report recommended removing the rule as a "priority action". The rule says students who failed over half of their studies weren't eligible for a HECS-HELP loan and had to pay upfront. Theoretically, the rule was supposed to protect young people from acquiring debt with no qualifications, aimed at students who are possibly ill-placed to be at university. Practically, the Accord panel found the rule disproportionately affected students from First Nations, low socioeconomic and other underrepresented or educationally disadvantaged backgrounds, who are more likely to fall behind in university due to external circumstances. The rule was removed and replaced with the 'support for students policy' in July 2023. Later on Wednesday in his National Press Club address, UA chief executive Luke Sheehy said bringing back the rule would be detrimental to students in equity cohorts, which the Accord and the Labor government have been trying to help become qualified for economic reasons. "It would be devastating. Our universities were very displeased and upset with the 50 per cent rule when it came in because it undermines the autonomy of our world class teachers and educators at our universities to support students in their own universities," he said. "I always worry about mandated policies from one central point in Canberra, made without proper consultation. It's such a blunt rule. And we will be asking again for the Coalition to reconsider that." Vice-chancellor salaries would be set by the Remuneration Tribunal, not university boards, under a Dutton government. "In this cost-of-living crisis, the current situation, frankly, does not meet the pub test," she told the audience. The senator would also back an "Australian universities performance index", a website accessible to the public that provides measurements of an institution's completion rates, student satisfaction, course quality and cost. "As a parent, I can attest to the complexity of navigating the university system for school leavers or those seeking to reskill or upgrade their qualifications," she said. "Just working out to which course to apply [for] is a challenge. So rather than judge universities on the research dollars they generate, which drives international students and global rankings, let's focus on home-grown performance. Related stories: Universities Australia's pitch to governments | Mary O’Kane to lead ATEC from July | Ombudsman: What universities can start doing now to support students "This reform will drive up competition, lift teaching standards and ensure students make informed choices about their education." While both major parties plan to bring down the number of international students studying in Australia, the Coalition's cap would be harsher than a Labor government's, and would focus on getting overseas students out of cities, where two-thirds of them reside, and into the regions. She echoed a speech delivered by veteran businesswoman and University of Technology Sydney chancellor Catherine Livingstone on Tuesday: universities haven't been listening to community concerns about the "perceived impact of immigration on housing availability and affordability.’’ "We persist with offering opaque and inflated claims about [universities'] direct impact," Senator Henderson said. "[The current number of international students] is not good for our country or for the education outcomes of Australian students. We need to get the balance right. Every country has a responsibility to run its migration program in the national interest." She said more information about a Coalition overseas student policy will be announced in the next few weeks. The LNP is disheartened about the lack of commercialisation of research, the senator said, which will be "put back on the agenda," fostering more collaboration between universities and industry to boost student experience and job-readiness. It will also reinstate ministerial discretion to all Australian Research Council grant programs, in contrast to the current government which has control of only some research grants,. By doing so, the government has "absolved itself of its responsibility to safeguard precious taxpayer funds in the interest of all Australians." "Under our Westminster system of government, the buck stops with the government of the day, and not an unelected board," she continued. "Universities matter. But universities that are run in the best interests of students really matter. "If I am given the honor of being the next Minister for Education, I look forward to working closely with you with certainty, not ambiguity, to share in this crucial mission." Read more: