The Opposition is piling on the pressure as the Senate goes slow on the Government’s international student quotas legislation.
“Every day generates more questions than answers about the Albanese Government’s flawed methodology used to allocate foreign student caps across the higher education and vocational sector, Susan Ley (Deputy Opposition Leader) and Sarah Henderson (education shadow) said in a joint statement yesterday.
After meetings with private VET providers the Opposition is backing complaints that the viability of legitimate colleges is being threatened by proposed cuts to their student numbers next year. “The fact that the vast majority of Australia’s vocational and higher education providers are responsibly run and deliver world-leading high-quality services has been ignored by Labor,” Ms Ley and Senator Henderson said.
“The Albanese Government’s scheme is riddled with incompetence, secrecy, uncertainty and unfairness.”
However their statement yesterday was silent on universities, who have led the charge against quotas.
And they were careful to make clear that it is process not politics they oppose. “The coalition supports capping international students, but we will continue to scrutinise this process and will do so until we get the answers we are seeking.”
The Opposition and constructive crossbench is doing its best to make the Government account for the construction of the quotas. The Senate committee inquiry into the bill has been extended twice, with submissions reopened until September 26 and a fourth hearing scheduled on October 2. It was originally scheduled to report om August 15, the final report is now expected on October 8.
While the Opposition is focusing on the treatment of private training providers university lobbies have long signalled that their immediate need is the end of Ministerial Direction 107 which delays and derails student visa processing. The timing of a cancellation may give the Opposition the win it needs to pass the quotas.
Whatever the timing and tactics capping international student numbers has not been the focus-group driven win the government may have expected. If the Senate wants amendments that Education Minister Jason Clare will wear there are 14 more sitting days in the Reps this year after October 8 and ten in the Senate.
