Education regulator cuts may let in 'fly-by-night operators', fears Kim Carr
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Version 0 of 1. The Abbott government has been warned of the need for strong regulation to prevent scores of new higher education providers rushing to claim commonwealth funds as part of sweeping changes to the sector. The government wants to expand direct financial support to all students studying diplomas, advanced diplomas, associate degrees and bachelor degrees at all approved higher education institutions, including Tafes, colleges and private providers. This move is predicted to cost $820m over four years, which comes out of the $1.9bn saving the government is making by cutting commonwealth contributions to university degrees while deregulating fees. At the same time the regulator that oversees the registration of higher education providers faces a funding cut. The federal budget includes a saving of about $31m over four years involving the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (Teqsa). The education minister, Christopher Pyne, argued the expansion of the demand-driven funding system to non-university providers would enhance choice. Disadvantaged students could access a sub-bachelor program to better prepare them for success in further study. But Labor's higher education spokesman, Kim Carr, said the decision to cut Teqsa’s budget in half was "accurately described as nuts". Carr will stress the need for the government to tread carefully when he addresses a symposium of the Australian Council for Private Education and Training (Acpet) in Sydney on Thursday. His speech notes say the government "will court disaster if they fail to ensure that a proper regulatory framework is in place before scores of new entrants rush to claim government funds". Carr will recount speaking at an Acpet conference 13 years ago when "the reputation of your industry was threatened by the prevalence of fly-by-night operators with the flimsiest of credentials or none at all". "Criminals were operating in an environment of fragmented and ineffective regulation, and together we made progress in cleaning up the industry," he will say. "As a result there are now universal protocols and accepted standards with which providers of higher education must comply. There are no more shopfront degree mills. No more purported universities run out of diving shops, whisky wholesalers or post office boxes." Carr will say the government needs to learn the lesson that no market could function properly without regulation. "Poorly regulated, or unregulated, markets allowed charlatans to flourish, tainting the reputations of genuine educators and threatening Australia’s international education industry … quality is the key to our international reputation. It’s our most precious asset. I worry that it is once again up for negotiation today." Teqsa's national register lists 174 providers, including universities, Tafe providers, institutes of design, music, language and business, colleges focusing on divinity and ministry, and colleges of natural medicine where people can study homeopathy. Deanna Taylor, the president of the National Union of Students, predicted the allocated costs for expanded funding to non-university providers could blow out as new providers emerged and existing ones expanded their offerings. Taylor voiced similar concerns about the government's plan to cut Teqsa's funding. "Diluting the money available that should be given to public universities so you can give it to a very large number of small, tin-pot providers is not the best use of public funds, particularly when you consider the clear evidence that public universities are underfunded," she said. But Adrian McComb, the chief executive of the Council of Private Higher Education, said choice was good for students and he did not see any risk to quality from the government's decision. Past issues in vocational education had been addressed, he said. McComb said pathway programs helped students with lower tertiary admission scores to ultimately succeed during further study and not drop out. He said the sector had experienced strong growth in the past 10 years with about 10% of students now attending non-university providers. He said the government's expansion of commonwealth-supported places to non-university providers was likely to lead to further growth in the sector, but he did not expect the government's budgeted cost to blow out. "I think students are ultimately going to be the beneficiaries," McComb said. "All the existing providers could pick up another 10% or 20% in student numbers which is huge for them but you're still only talking about 10% or 20% of small [providers]." Pyne said the government's cost estimate of about $800m over four years was "realistic". "As is currently the case, only providers who are registered with the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency will be eligible to receive commonwealth funding," he said. Pyne said the government was consulting higher education institutions on what further requirements may be placed on providers to access the support. "For example, providers whose students have commonwealth-supported places would need to take part in the student and employer satisfaction surveys, and would need to devote $1 in every $5 of any additional revenue to commonwealth scholarships. We are consulting on other terms," he said. The government faces a tough battle to secure passage of its higher education reforms through the Senate, with Labor, the Greens and the Palmer United party voicing their opposition to key elements of the package. |