The Australian Greens have long argued tertiary students shouldn’t pay tuition charges. This means they want to see HECS – now called HELP – abolished.
But following the Albanese government’s recent plans to wipe 20% off student loans, on Monday, the Greens announced they want to the cancel all student debt. This would cost the federal budget around A$75 billion.
Mehreen Faruqi, the Greens’ higher education spokesperson, argued, “student debt can’t be fixed because student debt shouldn’t exist”.
Are these reforms sensible and equitable, and is this a proper budgetary reform? The answer to all questions is a resounding “no”. It also most disadvantages relatively poor taxpayers.
