Media Releases 2008

13 May 2008

Budget commitments to universities commended

Universities Australia commends the Government for its strong commitment to an education revolution through university sector initiatives for infrastructure, as proposed by Universities Australia.

The Education Investment Fund (EIF) of $11 billion and the Better Universities Renewal Fund of $500 million will deliver much needed infrastructure funding to universities beginning in the 2007-08 financial year.

“The Rudd Government, through its first Budget, has recognised that an education revolution requires strong public investment in our universities, to sustain and grow their capacity to make effective contributions to the wealth and welfare of the nation”, Universities Australia CEO Dr Glenn Withers said.

“Universities Australia is pleased that the Government has honoured and funded its pre-election commitments on fellowships and scholarships, extra places, and discounting of HECS.

“While places, incentives and scholarships are important to encourage growth in the sector the Government must still address the immediate need for better funding per university place to maintain quality of teaching. The Government’s current reviews should address this.

“Universities Australia is also disappointed that there was no mention in the Budget of additional funds for student income support and services”, Dr Withers said.

Universities Australia welcomes the action taken by the Government in responding to our calls to supplement what was the Higher Education Endowment Fund (HEEF) with an additional $5 billion from surplus to create the EIF.

“This is a first step in indicating that the Government is serious about including higher education in its education revolution. This increased investment gives universities access to funding to redress the backlog of neglected infrastructure so necessary to a world class university system.

“Universities Australia is pleased that the Government has provided clarity on its proposed abolition of domestic undergraduate full-fee university places, including a commitment to compensate universities for lost revenue as a result of the phase out to the amount of $249 million over four years.

“This Budget is a useful first step towards achieving Universities Australia’s blue print for ensuring Australia has a world class university system that is internationally competitive, domestically strong and innovative”, Dr Withers said.

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Media Inquiries Rebecca Harris – phone: (02) 6285 8106 or 0400 166691