Student debt the best contraceptive say report

26 July 2004

Student debt the best contraceptive says new report

Student debt is putting borrowers off having babies and shutting them out of home ownership, according to a report released today by the New Zealand Institute.

“The study: The Wealth of a Nation, contains many stories from New Zealanders about the negative effects debt has on their life decisions that policy makers should listen to,” said Fleur Fitzsimons, Co-President of the New Zealand University Students’ Association (NZUSA).

“Student debt is acting as a contraceptive at the very time when young people are looking to settle down and start families,” said Fitzsimons “Student loans are a social experiment that has gone dangerously wrong in New Zealand and the negative effects could haunt us for many years to come”

“The report backs up research conducted by NZUSA on nurses and teachers, which shows that student debt is a barrier to borrowers forming families. Demographers also back up these concerns about the long term effects of the student debt monster.”

“The evidence is clear: student debt is wreaking havoc with the lives of New Zealanders and threatening the ability of the country to meet workforce demands.”

“The government needs to act quickly by introducing a living allowance for all students and abolishing student tuition fees so that no New Zealander is forced to borrow from the harsh student loan scheme,” said Fitzsimons.

ENDS

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