2000 Tertiary Education Funding Rates

Media Release
for immediate release
27 August, 1999

Attn: Education, Political & Social Issues Reporters

2000 Tertiary Education Funding Rates

Max Bradford, Tertiary Education Minister, has announced tertiary education funding rates for 2000. The funding structure has been changed so that different levels of study in the same course are subsidised differently, As suggested in last week’s Bright Future Package Mr Bradford has targeted these changes to increase funding for science and research based post-graduate courses.

Mr Bradford claims that next year’s tertiary education budget is up an extra $5 million; however this claimed increase is only to cover the increasing number of people entering tertiary institutions. It is not extra money at all. While an increase in funding to cover rising rolls is good, it does nothing to address the problem of rising student debt. Student fees will again rise next year and worsen the student debt problem.

“What this country’s tertiary education system needs is enough funding to educate people without creating a generation of debt,” said Mark Baxter, continuing “next year’s funding does nothing to solve the problem of rising student debt.”

Another aspect of today’s announcements is that public money is to be directed to privately owned tertiary institutions without previously planned quality control. The government’s tertiary white paper said that private institutions should get public funding but only after a quality control body had been set up. No such body has been established.

“Where state education offers sufficient courses, the state has no role in funding competing profit making ventures,” said Mark Baxter, adding “I suspect this government would rather see our Universities and Polytechs owned by overseas businesses.”

Further Information Steve Day, OUSA President 021-345-368 Mark Baxter, OUSA Campaign Coordinator 03-479-5332 fax. 03-479-5346

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