Higher education reform deserves more than a cliche

The Leader of the Opposition, Bill Shorten has again embarrassed himself with a speech to the National Press Club devoid of substance and riddled with meaningless platitudes.

Mr Shorten suggested Labor supported ‘reform’ in higher education but failed to reveal what that meant. His speech showed he had no idea, and no ideas.

If Labor is intending to vote against the Governments reforms, then they have a moral responsibility to reveal their alternative. Every university peak body in Australia supports the reform package. Labor’s blind opposition is at odds with the consensus of the entire higher education sector.

There are only two alternative options for Labor, either:

1. Re-cap university places meaning thousands of students would no longer even have a place at university, as Senator Kim Carr has hinted.
2. Make meaningless promises to spend billions of additional dollars increasing every year from a Budget Labor left in record debt and deficit. Labor’s record is one of cutting $6.6 billion from higher education.

Bill Shorten claimed he understands the importance of diplomas as critical training for the jobs of the future yet -

He is opposing the Government’s reforms that will support an uncapped number of students studying for diplomas and other sub-bachelor qualifications for the first time. This will mean more students benefitting from higher education and pathway courses than ever before.

Bill Shorten claimed he wants more young people from low-SES backgrounds to go to university -

Yet he is opposing the biggest scholarship programme in our history that will see thousands of disadvantaged young people going to university for the first time.

Labor is also voting against hundreds of millions of dollars for essential research programmes the previous government left unfunded, plus they are voting against the expansion of the system to non-university higher education providers including TAFEs.

Bill Shorten and Labor are more concerned with cringe-worthy clichés and hysterical scare campaigns intended to turn people off University rather than engaging in a conversation about reform; a reform which has the consensus support across the higher education sector.