We call it a mess, they call it life

Media Release
09/04/2008

We call it a mess, they call it life.

Around the country this Thursday, students’ associations are speaking up against growing student debt that continues to spiral out of control unchecked.

“It seemed like only yesterday we were protesting the day that student debt hit $9 billion dollars, yet here we are again, one year on, looking at a total student debt of $10 billion dollars, Out of control is an understatement” said Ryan Ward, OPSA co-president today.

“Every New Zealander has stood and watched as it hit one billion, then two billion. Now students sit in an age with governments that believe that its just part of life and students are expected to go in to debt in order to study” said Mr Ward.

Since 1990 the total student debt has continued to grow and grow. Government forecasts for student debt show annual billion dollar increases over the next five years, growing to one billion every eleven months.

“Students are the only group in society that are literally forced to take out loans exceeding $30,000 just to pay things like rent and groceries, on top of that students need to take out bank overdrafts for those ‘Hard times’ that they face.” Meegan Cloughley, OPSA co-president said. “Having this debt pushed upon students does not help create a stress free learning environment.”

“All future governments need to realise that this isn’t an issue that can just be ignored, we’re not talking about a small issue anymore, this is billions of dollars.” said Mr Ward

OPSA will be holding a rally on the Forth street campus at 12 noon on Thursday, to voice the Association’s concerns about the massive increase of student debt. Students will have the chance to exchange billion dollar notes for the opportunity to drench the debt monster.

-ENDS