Universities Accord (Cutting Student Debt by 20 Per Cent) Bill 2025; In Committee

Continued the debate

Faruqi moved an amendment to reverse the fee hikes associated with the Job-ready Graduates package for degrees in the Society and Culture funding cluster. Faruqi argued that student fees for arts degrees had risen significantly, exceeding $50,000, and that the government had not acted on its own accord findings regarding urgent remediation. Faruqi contended that the proposed one-off debt cut did not assist new students facing high tuition costs or those deterred from attending university. Faruqi urged support for the amendment to repeal what was described as a punitive fee structure.

Government response

Walsh stated that the government could not support the amendment at this time. Walsh highlighted that the government was implementing 31 of the 47 recommendations from the Universities Accord, including fairer indexation and cost-of-living relief. Walsh noted that $3 billion in HELP debt had been wiped for three million Australians and that Commonwealth prac payments had commenced for eligible students. Walsh emphasised that the bill delivered on election commitments to cut student debt by 20 per cent and introduce structural reforms.