What happened Sunday 25 February
With that, we’ll wrap up our live coverage of the day’s news.
Here’s a summary of the main news developments:
University course fees may be changed and students given more support in paying their Hecs and Help debts, as part of a proposed massive overhaul of the tertiary education system being considered by the government.
Six homes have been destroyed by bushfires in Victoria, as authorities issue a warning of “grave concern” for fire danger in the state on Wednesday.
A security guard has died after he was allegedly punched in the head during an altercation at a hotel in Sydney’s south, and a man charged with assault occasioning death.
The 120-year-old mystery of the disappearance of a coal ship off the coast of NSW has been solved, after a commercial company looking for lost cargo accidentally stumbled upon its ocean-floor wreckage.
The US ambassador to Australia might become the first person to complete the charity Shitbox Rally with a blacked-out, armoured SUV in tow.
Have a pleasant evening.
Residents warned to prepare to leave as fire threatens Tasmania’s central highlands
Authorities in Tasmania have issued a watch and act warning for a fire threatening Highland Waters, Central Highlands and their surrounds.
Residents are being told to prepare to leave.
The fire is expected to impact Highland Waters by 7pm on Sunday.
“The fire is expected to be difficult to control. Embers, smoke, and ash may fall on Highland Waters in the vicinity of Victoria Valley Road and Wigrams Way,” authorities said.
There are four other fires at watch and act level in Tasmania. They are:
Victoria Valley and Osterley
Strickland and surrounding areas
Dee, Bradys Lake, Tarraleah and their surrounds
Victoria Valley Road, South of Osterley
Updated
Science academy backs university reform report recommendations
The Australian Academy of Science has also welcomed the Australian universities accord final report released on Sunday.
Academy President Prof Chennupati Jagadish said the report warned that unless the nation continued to produce more knowledge, skills, opportunities, and research, then we would face a decline in Australia’s productivity, innovation and standard of living.
To solve this issue, the Accord recommended the government commission a cross-portfolio examination of Australia’s research funding and develop a strategy that sets targets for Australia’s overall spending on research and development.
The Academy has been calling for both these initiatives for several years, including in our latest pre-Budget submission, so we are pleased to see these recommendations in the report.
The report underlines the critical need to modernise our national science and innovation system.
Jagadish also welcomed recommendations to establish an Australian Tertiary Education Commission, funding the full cost of research and a Higher Education Future Fund.
Updated
Inquest to examine role racism played in death of Indigenous Australian man
An inquest will this week examine the death of Ricky Hampson Jr, a 36-year-old Kamilaroi-Dunghutti man, who died of perforated duodenal ulcers less than 24 hours after being discharged from the Dubbo hospital in western NSW.
Known affectionately as “Dougie”, Hampson went to the emergency department in extreme pain on in August 2021 after feeling a tearing sensation in his abdomen and hearing a popping sound while walking on the street.
He was quickly sedated and slept on-and-off for 18 hours, before being discharged with painkillers and a direction to drink water.
His friends have told the Hampson family it took him five hours to make the short trip back to where he was staying, with some saying he was seen lying down at a bus shelter in pain.
He made it back to the house, but could not be woken on the morning of 16 August.
The case has been compared to that of Naomi Williams, a Wiradjuri woman who died of septicaemia in 2016 after presenting to hospital in Tumut at least 18 times in seven months.
Experts told the inquest into Williams’ death there was evidence of a link between Aboriginality and less treatment, with data showing Indigenous patients receive 30% fewer procedures.
Deputy State Coroner Harriet Grahame found the treatment of the 27-year-old pregnant woman was “consistent with a pattern” and recommended the health district boost its Aboriginal workforce.
- AAP
Updated
Western Sydney University to launch a study hub
Western Sydney University will launch a study hub in western Sydney to help students better access higher education.
The launch of Fairfield Connect was timed to coincide with the release of the University Accord Final Report on Sunday, which includes recommendations to boost the number of university study hubs in regional and outer metropolitan areas.
Chancellor Prof Jennifer Westacott AO and vice-chancellor and president, Prof Barney Glover AO, made the announcement on Sunday morning, where they were joined by the federal education minister, Jason Claire, the minister for climate change and energy, Chris Bowen and Prof Mary O’Kane, chair of the Accord panel.
Updated
Universities Accord final report welcomed by Australian Technology Network of Universities
The Australian Technology Network of Universities (ATN) has released a statement welcoming the release of the universities accord final report by the education minister, Jason Clare.
The ATN chair, Prof Harlene Hayne CNZM, congratulated Accord chair Prof Mary O’Kane AC and her expert panel on 47 new recommendations which reconfirmed that equity, future skills and lifelong learning are at the heart of the wide-ranging and ambitious reform agenda.
The panel has taken on board the direction provided by key stakeholders across the sector, including issues such as research capabilities and student support. There is a lot to consider in the weeks and months ahead and we look forward to working closely with the Government to ensure the best outcome from the Universities Accord recommendations.
With the path now laid out by the Accord, ATN, which has always been renowned as a strong policy-driven group of universities, looks forward to playing our part in the reform process while continuing to advocate for a healthier and fairer university system.
Updated
American ambassador joins charity ‘shitbox rally’
The US ambassador is set swap a chauffeured BMW for the driver’s seat of beat-up Ford Falcon to take on some of Australia’s most formidable roads.
Caroline Kennedy might become the first person to complete the charity Shitbox Rally with a blacked-out, armoured SUV in tow.
America’s top envoy to Australia will drive from Adelaide to Perth in April in a car worth less than $1500, raising money for cancer research.
For more on this story, read the full report at Guardian Australia;
Updated
NSW police commissioner extends ‘heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of Luke Davies and Jesse Baird’
NSW police commissioner Karen Webb has sent her condolences to the families of Luke Davies and Jesse Baird in a statement regarding their deaths:
I would like to extend my heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of Luke Davies and Jesse Baird. It is difficult to comprehend the grief and pain of their loss.
I acknowledge this week’s events are distressing for many and I share the sadness and shock about the alleged nature of Luke and Jesse’s deaths.
I understand there are many unanswered questions and while I cannot comment on the matter before the courts, I can reassure Luke and Jesse’s loved ones, and the people of NSW, that we are working around the clock to find those answers.
I ask the community to have patience as police work to determine what happened.
As our investigation continues, I would ask anyone who has information that could assist, to please come forward and contact us.
Updated
Auction activity rises
Auction activity has risen sharply this weekend with 2,775 auctions held.
This is a sharp rise on the 2,091 held last week but a modest gain on the 2,429 auctions that occurred at the same time last year.
Based on results collected so far, CoreLogic’s summary found that the preliminary clearance rate was 73.5% across the country, which is lower than the 75.4% preliminary rate recorded last week but above the 68.8% actual rate on final numbers.
Across the capital cities:
Sydney: 981 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 77.3%
Melbourne: 1,388 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 70.6%
Brisbane: 168 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 72.8%
Adelaide: 145 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 87.9%
Canberra: 85 auctions with a preliminary clearance rate of 57.1%
Tasmania: Two auctions held.
Perth: Four of six auctions held.
Updated
Economic health assessments to be taken on inflation, retail and home prices
Australians will have a better sense of which way inflation is heading this week with data releases on spending activity, the property market and business investment due.
The economic health assessments will start on Wednesday with the monthly consumer price index for January.
While missing some of the price moves captured in the full quarterly version, the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ monthly index will still be scanned for evidence of easing price pressures ahead of the Reserve Bank’s interest rate meeting in March.
Consumer price growth has been easing more quickly than the RBA anticipated, although the central bank still expects it to take until 2025 to be back within its target range of 2-3%.
In the 12 months to December, the consumer price index rose 3.4%, well down from the 4.3% growth through to November.
Labour shortages are also keeping construction costs high.
Retail sales data lined up for Thursday will shed some light on the all-important consumer sector, which has been battered by a series of interest rate rises and rising living costs.
The RBA has been monitoring consumers closely as a source of uncertainty for its plan to bring inflation back to its target range while keeping the economy growing.
The statistics bureau will on Wednesday release data on completed construction work, and on Thursday an update on past and expected business spending.
Both sets of figures will inform the economic growth equation for the December quarter that is due in the following week.
On Friday, private real estate data firm CoreLogic will release its home value index for February
– AAP
Updated
Straws, vapes and a lady’s sex toy: the Manly diver who’s spent 30 years clearing marine plastic
Every morning a tractor rolls over Manly’s picture-perfect beaches, scraping away the signs of the day before. But below the water’s pristine surface, where council clean-up teams struggle to scour, a jumble of plastics tell a different tale.
It is a story Richard Nicholls knows well. Over three decades, the 63-year-old “Tricky” Nicholls has led thousands of divers and snorkelers on monthly clean-up dives while tracking trends in Sydney’s marine plastics.
The seabed acts as a public record, full of stories from Sydney’s past.
We’ve found everything from an accordion to a kid’s piano, and last year, to everyone’s shock, we found a lady’s sex toy.
We found an inmate’s bag from when they exited the New South Wales correctional centre. Maybe they tossed it over the Manly ferry, saying ‘Yippee, I’m free’.
While underwater, it’s easy to spot an item at odds with nature’s colour palette: a flash of neon pink tangled in blades of kelp isn’t the scales of a fish – it’s a raspberry vape. But some larger items, like shopping trolleys, have been swallowed by the sea for so long that they are camouflaged by moss and barnacles.
For more on this story, read the full Guardian Australia feature:
PM skirts question on watching Taylor Swift and Katy Perry perform in same week
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, appeared on Channel Seven’s Sunrise this morning, where he was asked about having seen Katy Perry on Saturday night and Taylor Swift in the same week.
Perry performed for a private show for 200 guests at an event organised by the children of late packaging magnate Richard Pratt. Hosted at the family’s Melbourne Mansion, the prime minister skirted the question:
Well, I gave a speech last night at the food and beverage annual dinner. Last year, that was held in Sydney. This year, [it] was held here in Melbourne. It’s an annual event and it’s an opportunity to talk to manufacturers. One of the things I want is a future made here in Australia. And last night I was talking with Wesfarmers, Bundaberg, Asahi, Arnott’s biscuits, all those fantastic Australian companies who make products here for domestic purposes but also export to the world. The good news that I got last night from many of the businesses was that they’re expanding their operations. That means more jobs here and it means our economy is more resilient here as well.
Asked whether he got any friendship bands from his time at the Swift concern, the PM said he enjoyed himself.
I did get a few friendship bands. Look, I think at a time where there’s so much turmoil in the world, one of the reasons why Taylor Swift’s tour has been such a success is it’s so positive, it’s so uplifting, and that is her message. That’s why she sold out all those concerts here at the MCG with 96,000 people night after night after night. And she’ll be playing in Sydney, of course, for another couple of nights to come. And she’s a very welcome visitor here. And her message of female empowerment is, I think, a positive one. And secondly, as well, it’s been pretty good for the economy as well. Good for jobs and good for economic activity. So, that’s always welcome as well.
Updated
Australia’s role in US, UK Houthi strikes understood to be similar to previous campaign
You may have already seen the joint statement confirming Australia supported US and UK strikes against 18 Houthi targets in Yemen. We don’t have details of the ‘support’ provided, but last month when a similar campaign was carried out, defence minister Richard Marles confirmed Australia had personnel in the operational headquarters.
There has been no confirmation this time around, but it is understood Australia’s role was in a similar capacity. There is still no ship being sent to the Red Sea by Australia, but there is personnel support.
Updated
New Australian cybersecurity coordinator announced
Australia officially has a new national cybersecurity coordinator after the sudden departure of the inaugural head, air marshal Darren Goldie.
Lt Gen Michelle McGuinness will start the role as of Monday, confirming a rumour which had been swirling within defence circles for weeks.
Like Goldie before her, McGuinness has no cybersecurity qualifications. Instead, the government is counting on her 30 years in “a range of tactical, operational and strategic roles” within defence and security agencies to help guide Australia’s cybersecurity response.
Goldie was “recalled to defence” over a “workplace matter” which pre-dated his time in the new cybersecurity agency in November, just four months into the role.
Updated
Lost Tasmanian bushwalker found
A bushwalker who did not return to camp has been found after his friends raised an alarm with Tasmanian police.
A helicopter was deployed to Federation Peak in south west Tasmania, with a ground search and rescue crew on board.
The missing bushwalker was able to contact authorities by phone and provide coordinates of his location. He had fallen and sustained a head injury.
The man, in his 30s, was found about 1:45am and flown to the Royal Hobart hospital for treatment.
Updated
NSW police commissioner apologises for historical failings
Karen Webb, the NSW police commissioner, has released a statement regarding the law enforcement response to the findings of the Special Commission of Inquiry into LGBTIQ hate crimes.
NSW police have previously been criticised for their “adversarial” and “defensive” approach to the 18-month inquiry that investigated historical hate-crimes carried out against LGBTQ+ people between 1970 and 2010.
The inquiry found that 14 of 22 unsolved deaths investigated by a police strike force were homicides. A remaining six should be classed as “suspected homicides”.
Webb apologised for the failure to adequately investigate the deaths.
I recognise that the investigation failings highlighted by the Special Commission of Inquiry (SCOI) report have resulted in enduring hurt for many. They do not represent the standards the community expect of us, and we expect of ourselves.
To the victims and families that NSW Police failed by not adequately and fairly investigating those deaths between 1970 and 2010, I am sorry.
I apologise for the gaps in those investigative processes where records and exhibits were lost or not examined with enough rigour.
I realise that this has meant missed opportunities to identify possible offenders as new leads emerged or as new forensic advances became available.
And I acknowledge the increased suffering experienced by victims and their families where the crimes were motivated by bias against members of the LGBTIQ community.
I assure the LGBTIQ community that under my leadership, NSW Police will use these lessons to continue to improve the way it serves all members of the community with respect, fairness, and inclusivity.
The mistakes of the past will not define our future.
For more on this story, read Guardian Australia’s previous reporting:
Updated
Police search waterway for missing men
Divers have scoured a waterway on the NSW north coast as the search continues for the bodies of a young couple who police believe were murdered in Sydney’s east.
Police divers have since been seen searching a waterway in Lambton, Newcastle as part of a continuing investigation into where the bodies of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies could be located.
- AAP
Updated
Rainfall and strong wind gusts as Lincoln impacts coast
Ex-Tropical Cyclone Lincoln could bring heavy rain and strong winds to Western Australia’s interior as it moves southeast on Sunday.
The system crossed the coast, near Carnarvon in the state’s northwest late on Saturday night as a tropical low.
It was previously forecast to intensify to a category 1 or 2 cyclone however the Bureau of Meteorology downgraded it on Friday.
Although Lincoln didn’t intensify as predicted, it still brought heavy rain and strong winds.
Since 7am on Saturday morning Carnarvon has received 78mm of rain, and at Geraldton wind gusts of up to 76km/h were recorded.
Flood watches are in place for the Pilbara, Gascoyne Coast and Central West District Rivers.
But severe thunderstorm warnings for parts of the Kimberley have been cancelled.
Evacuation centres have been opened in Carnarvon and Exmouth.
Urban search and rescue specialists are among the dozens of emergency service personnel deployed to communities likely to be affected.
The Bureau of Meteorology said the system is expected to move south towards WA’s wheat belt on Sunday before dissipating on Monday.
Rain of up to 50mm is predicted for area’s in Lincoln’s path but there is a chance of severe storms and higher falls.
– AAP
Updated
Flash flooding fears after storms lash Queensland
Storms have lashed Queensland overnight and there are fears flash flooding and high humidity are to follow.
The Bureau of Meteorology has recorded more than 100mm of rain in some places, with additional falls expected on the Capricornia and Wide Bay coastlines.
The tropical northern stretch of the state is forecast to face a drenching as wet season conditions continue, but the rest of the state is expected to have a break and a chance to dry out on Sunday.
Updated
Victorian government announces $21m package for flood clean up
Symes also say the Victorian government has partnered with the federal government to deliver a $21m package to help those communities affected by floods across the Christmas and New Year period to clean up and dispose of debris.
This includes $8m for a council support fund.
We know that when emergencies hit communities, the first people on the ground is very often, your council workers who are side by side with our emergency responders.
They are the ones that are operating the relief centres. They are the ones that are working on the ground with their communities. They are the ones that have responsibility for preparing, repairing all of the damage to infrastructure, parks, footpaths, playgrounds and this support fund is going to go some way to ensuring that our councils can make those necessary repairs for their communities.
Updated
‘Grave concern’: Victorians in fire prone areas warned to prepare for hot weather
Symes says the Victorian government holds concerns about the next week with temperatures expected to soar, particularly around Wednesday and Thursday. She says government officials are meeting with fire agencies and the Bureau of Meteorology to “get a sense of what Wednesday looks like”.
What we know already is that the indicators are in the extreme range. I was with chief of the CFA, Jason Heffernan, yesterday. He expressed his grave concern about what may eventuate on Wednesday. We’re expecting not only high temperatures but also wind is expected. And given the hot weather that we have had in recent weeks, a lot of drying has occurred, particularly in the west of the state. We will have more to say in the coming days, but I do want to take the opportunity to remind Victorians who are in fire prone areas, particularly the west and central parts of the state, you must act.
You must have your fire plan developed. You must have the conversations with your family members, your neighbours, and know what you’re going to do in the event of an evacuation.
Updated
Six homes destroyed in Victorian bushfires
The Victorian emergency services minister, Jaclyn Symes, has given an update on the Victorian bushfires, saying there are three watch and act alerts out, with the towns of Amphitheatre and Elmhurst of “particular concern”.
There are “about 550 firefighters on the ground” on Sunday and efforts to suppress the fire are continuing.
Symes said 228 impact assessments had been done to date, with six residential homes destroyed.
Obviously, that is very sobering news for those families. And we will certainly be having support measures for those communities once that advice becomes more available.
Updated
A security guard has died after alleged assault in Sydney’s South
Emergency services were called to a licensed premises on East Parade, Sutherland after reports a security guard had been assaulted.
Officers attached to Sutherland Shire police area command attended and found a man unconscious outside the hotel.
Police performed CPR before the man was treated by NSW Ambulance paramedics but died at the scene.
The man hasn’t been formally identified; however, is believed to be aged in his 30s.
A crime scene was established and an investigation into the incident commenced.
Police were told the security guard was allegedly punched to the head by a patron after an altercation. It’s alleged the patron was asked to leave the hotel before the assault.
Following inquiries, a 31-year-old man was arrested and taken to Sutherland police station.
Police will speak to the media regarding the investigation at 11.30am on Sunday morning.
Updated
Large bushfire in western Victoria continues to burn
Hundreds of firefighters battling a large bushfire in western Victoria have been aided by cooler weather conditions but residents are warned to remain across emergency alerts.
As of Saturday afternoon, a large fire west of Ballarat had destroyed at least three homes and other buildings after tearing through nearly 16,000 hectares.
Premier Jacinta Allan, who visited affected communities on Saturday, said it was lucky no lives had been lost but that residents should continue to be aware of the risk.
It’s a big fire that’s already burned a lot of land, but it also is continuing to burn and will burn for a number of days and weeks ahead.
There is a very wide fire front that remains very active and there’s currently around 700 people out on the fire ground out actively working on this fire.
On Saturday, the Country Fire Authority issued a leave-now warning for Amphitheatre residents as the blaze approached the town.
People told to evacuate earlier in the week have not yet been able to return to their homes.
They include residents from Avoca, Bayindeen, Chute, Elmhurst, Mount Lonarch and surrounds, Main Lead, Raglan, Middle Creek, Waterloo, Glenlofty, Glenpatrick, Glenshee, Green Hill Creek, Nowhere Creek, Crowlands, Eversley, Landsborough, Percydale and Warrenmang.
While weather conditions eased on Saturday afternoon, authorities were concerned about upcoming forecast hot temperatures.
Wednesday is of the most concern to firefighters, described as a “spike” day when the mercury is set to soar above 40C.
- AAP
This weekend’s pro-Palestine rallies
Weekly pro-Palestine rallies are being held across Australian capitals. Here are the details of the protests planned for Sunday (and those that were held on Saturday):
Sydney: 1.30pm at Hyde Park.
Melbourne: 12pm at the State Library of Victoria
Perth: A march was organised on Saturday starting at Hillary’s Boat Harbour at 7am and ending at Bathar’s Beach at 5.30pm.
Brisbane: A rally was held outside Dr Jim Chalmers office in Rowan Park on Saturday.
Adelaide: 2pm Sunday, outside Parliament House.
Hobart: A rally was held on Saturday at 11am on Davey Street.
Updated
Australia supports fourth round of strikes against Houthi targets
Australia has once again supported strikes on Yemen by the United States and United Kingdom, which targeted eight locations.
Australia’s role in the operation, the fourth to date, was acknowledged in a statement by the US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin.
Today, the militaries of the United States and the United Kingdom, with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, and New Zealand, conducted strikes against military targets in Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen. Coalition forces targeted eight locations, which included Houthi underground weapons storage facilities, missile storage facilities, one-way attack unmanned aerial systems, air defense systems, radars, and a helicopter, to further disrupt and degrade the capabilities of the Iranian-backed Houthi militia to conduct their destabilizing and reckless attacks against U.S. and international vessels lawfully transiting the Red Sea, the Bab AI-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden.
The United States will not hesitate to take action, as needed, to defend lives and the free flow of commerce in one of the world’s most critical waterways. We will continue to make clear to the Houthis that they will bear the consequences if they do not stop their illegal attacks, which harm Middle Eastern economies, cause environmental damage, and disrupt the delivery of humanitarian aid to Yemen and other countries.
Previously, the Australian support for the strikes took the form of defence personnel in non-operational roles.
While the government has not been definitive about precisely what the personnel are doing, it is understood it could include helping to monitor information and providing analytical and specialist advice.
Updated
Good morning from Canberra, where it is all about the higher education changes and next week’s Dunkley byelection.
Education Jason Clare will be officially responding to the higher education report a little later today, but he has done some forward sizzle on programs like Insiders.
Anthony Albanese also spent the morning speaking about it, telling the Nine Network:
More and more, we know that the world of work is changing as well. So, people will have to have retraining.
People will have more than one career in their lifetime for the younger generations coming through. And it’s really important that we back education, which my government is doing from early childhood learning right through to Tafe and universities and, of course, through the school sector as well, where we’re negotiating out with state and territory governments to make sure that all schools are brought up to that standard so they can get a quality of education.
Updated
Jason Clare wants to ‘finish’ the Gonski model and close the education gap
The minister says he wants to “finish” the Gonksi model and warns the Coalition will seek to rip up any deal made by Labor.
I’m not trying to break the Gonski model. I want to finish it. I am a product of public education and damn proud of it. I want to close the education gap. There is a lot at stake here. I’ve got to introduce legislation at the end of the year to increase funding to public schools, the Liberal Party will vote against it. If they win next year, they will rip that up. If you doubt me, look at what they did last time. The agreement that we strike this year and the election next year will be for decade, whether we build a fairer and better education system or not.
Clare suggests Australia will find out when they go to the polls next year.
Updated
Funding transparency key, says Clare
Clare says he won’t be drawn on the negotiations the federal government is having with the states, but says he wants to “do a deal with every state and territory to get every public school up to that full-funding level and make sure the money we tie to the things that we know work to tackle the sorts of problems that exist at the moment”.
The point I would make is I want taxpayers money to glow in the dark. I want parents and teachers to know where the money is going, whether it is in a public school or non-government school. That’s the key here.
Updated
Changes to philanthropic funding for universities ruled out
Clare has ruled out making changes to philanthropic funding for universities that may share around bequests, saying people may chose to donate to a higher education future fund rather than a specific university or to a particular institution.
On public school funding, the minister said the current arrangement left a 5% gap between what government provided and what public schools were expected to cough up.
The negotiations we are having now is how we fill that gap. What the commonwealth government chips in and what the states chip in, and importantly what we use that money for, what we tie that money to, to make it work, making sure we invest that money in the sort of things that will help make sure more kids do finish school and a big part that have is going right back to the start – identifying kids who are falling behind early.
Updated
Changes to indexation for HECS-HELP payments coming soon: Clare
On indexation, Clare says the government will look at making changes about how this interest payment is applied to HECS-HELP payments “in the next few months”.
It is worth remembering that a generation of Australians will be making those payments, which are due from 1 July at tax time.
Updated
Report says HECS needs to be ‘simpler and fairer’: Clare
Clare says the report includes recommendations about student allowances and proposals around indexation and how to reduce HECS payments He says it makes clear that “HECS has to be simpler and fairer”.
Bruce Chapman, the architect of HECS, has helped the panel with a recommendation which says there are ways to reduce upfront payments for people on lower incomes. For example, if we were to go down this path, it says that someone on an income of $75,000 a year would pay every year about $1,000 less. That is something that could provide people with an immediate cost-of-living benefit once they finish uni and are in the workforce, on top of the tax cuts that we’ve introduced and will hopefully go through the Senate this week.
The minister said the government won’t be responding to the report today with what they will and won’t do, and cautions that the government “can’t do all of this right away”.
This is bigger than one budget, but we do need to get started now to build the foundations for long-term reform.
Updated
Universities would benefit from diversity in size and subjects: Clare
Clare on funding:
Different models are suggested. The report also recommends that if we go down this path, we set up an implementation advisory committee to look at the detailed structure of it and make sure we get the legislation that underpins it right.
The report is that all universities look the same at the moment, roughly the same number of students teaching the same sort of subjects and says we would benefit from a bit more diversity – different universities doing different things. Some bigger, some smaller. Making sure they have got what is immediately needed.
When I grew up, there was no university near me. It meant for a lot of kids in my classroom, uni meant it was for someone else, somewhere else. I want to make sure that kids in the regions get a crack at the university education.
Updated
Morrison university reforms have failed, says Clare
Clare says reforms introduced under the previous Morrison Coalition government, which made some degrees cheaper and others, like arts and law, more expensive, have failed.
More people studied arts degrees after this change came into place than before it. I guess a classic example that people pick the subjects that they do at university based on what they love, what they want to do, the profession they want to go in rather than the deferred HECS payment.
The minister says getting the pay structure right is important, with the Accord representing a blueprint “not just for the next couple of years, but over the next two decades”.
Over that time there will be plenty of different ideas, plenty of different governments and even different vice-chancellor. We want to drive and sustain higher education reform over the next two decades.
Updated
‘We have a teaching crisis’: Clare says report makes clear areas of focus
Clare, however, says the government won’t be responding to the report on Sunday, but says “it strikes me the areas where the government needs to work together on this because it means the difference of finishing a degree or not.”
In teaching, for example, only 24% who start a teaching degree finish it. We have a teaching crisis. We would go part of the way to tackling that crisis.
Updated
Labor to consider 'jobs broker' to help tertiary students find placements: Jason Clare
Clare says the report makes clear that more financial support is required to assist students in high education.
The report says if we are going to do this, and we’ve got to do it otherwise we have an economy with the handbrake on, you have to make it easier for people to move between the two, and we have to get rid of that invisible barrier that stops a lot of young people from poor families from the regions and from the outer suburbs of our big cities from getting a crack at university in the first place.
Clare claims that, in last year’s budget, Youth Allowance and Austudy were increased in pursuit of this and will consider a “jobs broker” that will help students find placements in the fields in which they are studying.
I spent a fair amount of time while I was at university cooking cheese toast at Sizzler, rather than working in the area I was studying, which was a law degree. That’s an area where can you help people with the cost of living.
On paid practice, it makes the point, if you are a nursing student you are spending 800 hours working in a hospital where are you not paid, if you are a teaching student, 300 hours in the classroom where you are not paid.
Clare says he’s also particularly concerned about students, such as in nursing and teaching jobs, who have completed the theory portion of their degree, but who cannot afford to do the practical component which requires them to work for free.
They’ve done the theory, but they drop out because they can’t afford the practice, or they end up sleeping in a car because they can’t afford the bills.
Updated
All young people should ‘get a crack at university”, says education minister
Federal education minister Jason Clare has told Insiders the government’s priority for university reform is improving access, saying young people from working class and disadvantage backgrounds can “get a crack at university”.
At the moment about one in two kids in their 20s and 30s have a university degree, but not in my neck of the woods, not where I grew up, and not in the regions.
Clare said Prime Ministers Bob Hawke and Paul Keating boosted the number of young people finishing high school from 40% to almost 80% – but the universities accord final report found the next step now needs to be taken.
That includes you and me and a lot of people watching the program. That’s nation-changing stuff. What this report says is by the middle of the century, we need a workforce where 80% of people haven’t just finished high school, but they’ve gone to TAFE or university as well. That’s no easy task.
Updated
Lowering cost of higher education critical to meeting Australia’s skills shortage, report warns
Access to higher education among disadvantaged Australians must be dramatically scaled up and the financial burden of studying eased if the country is to meet acute skills shortages, a major report has found.
The highly anticipated universities accord final report, being released by the education minister, Jason Clare, on Sunday, was expected to lay out the blueprint for the tertiary sector over the coming decades.
The report contains 47 recommendations, including compensating students for hundreds of hours of mandatory placements and tweaking Help loans to reduce ballooning student debt.
Help is an indispensable part of the higher education funding system, but it requires reform to retain its social licence.
Australians should not be deterred from higher education because of the increased burden of student loans.
For more on this story, read the full report by Guardian Australia’s higher education reporter Caitlin Cassidy:
The education minister Jason Clare will be speaking with ABC Insiders host David Speers shortly about the government’s plans to reform the university sector and expand access.
Meanwhile, the deputy prime minister Richard Marles has appeared on Sky News this morning to discuss Border Force funding levels.
We will bring you all the latest as it happens.
Coming up on #Insiders with host David Speers:
— ABC News (@abcnews) February 24, 2024
• 🔎Education Minister Jason Clare
• 📷 Dan Ilic
• 🛋️Katina Curtis, Sarah Ison and Raf Epstein
See you at 9am #auspol pic.twitter.com/ehlEni6kUm
Updated
Police pick up search for missing couple’s bodies
A search for the bodies of the former Ten reporter Jesse Baird, 26, and the Qantas flight attendant Luke Davies, 29, will continue on Sunday.
The couple’s disappearance was considered suspicious when possessions belonging to both of them were found in a skip bin in the southern Sydney suburb of Cronulla on Wednesday.
The discovery led police to Baird’s blood-smeared share house, about 30km away in inner-city Paddington.
On Saturday, mourners laid floral tributes outside the Paddington terrace where police allege the murders took place.
Baird’s former Network Ten colleagues took to social media to pay their respects while the AFL, who he was recently acting as an umpire for, issued a statement.
The independent Sydney MP Alex Greenwhich called for a review of police training when it comes to matters concerning the LGBTQI community.
The police urgently need to do more to make sure the LGBTQI community is safe in NSW and confident in reporting crime.
We need a review of police training when it comes to LGBTQI issues (and) that needs to be delivered in a co-designed way with LGBTQI communities.
Beau Lamarre, a 28-year-old serving police officer, has been charged with two counts of murder over the couple’s disappearance.
- AAP
Updated
Good Morning
And welcome to this Sunday’s Guardian live blog.
Access to education among disadvantaged Australians must be dramatically scaled up, according to a major review of university funding and operations. The universities accord final report has been released by education Minister Jason Clare on Sunday, laying out the blueprint for the tertiary sector over the coming decades.
The search for the bodies of TV host Jesse Baird and his partner Luke Davies continues. Police found bloody possessions belonging to both men in a skip bin in Cronulla on Wednesday, which in turn led them Baird’s blood-stained sharehouse 30km away in Paddington. Mourners have laid floral tributes to the couple outside their Sydney home, where police believer their murders took place.
I’m Royce Kurmelovs and I’ll be taking the blog through the day.
With that, let’s get started ...
