Media Media Releases ALSA Opposes Proposed Expense Loan Plan
| ALSA Opposes Proposed Expense Loan Plan |
 |
 |
 |
| Friday, 18 July 2008 00:00 |
|
The Australian Law Students’ Association (ALSA) today urged the government not to adopt the proposed expense loan plan presented to the Bradley review board. In response to the proposal to allow students to put expenses onto a ‘HECS style’ loan plan, Vice President (Education), Mitch Riley, said that the scheme failed to address the real issue of inadequate income support for the most disadvantage students.‘The simple fact is that providing larger student loans to all students completely fails to address the inadequacies of the current system.’ ‘If this proposed scheme goes ahead, the current issues surrounding student poverty will not be solved but simply hidden away. ‘What is needed is a complete overhaul of the Youth Allowance system. Currently, it is near impossible for students to receive Youth Allowance in their first year of study without taking a gap year, due to the overly onerous requirements to qualify as “independent” for Youth Allowance.’ Mr Riley suggested that imposing further debt on students from a low socio-economic background would not be a solution in and of itself. Rather, it might discourage such students from pursuing tertiary study altogether. ‘This proposal will impact on the most poor and vulnerable students by exposing them to more debt, which provides a further disincentive to engage in tertiary study. If you are already hesitant about pursuing tertiary education, being saddled with more debt will simply make the prospect of skipping university altogether much more appealing.’ Law students already face double degrees costing in excess of $40 000 and some of the highest textbook costs of any degree. Media contact
|