Campus Review | 12 June 2013
The impact of the $2.3 billion cut from the university sector to fund schools funding reform appear not have been properly analysed, it has emerged at a Senate estimates committee hearing.
Nationals Senator Fiona Nash asked education officials for any analysis done to determine how the cuts will affect regional universities.
Robert Griew from the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations responded:
… there was a great deal of information provided in consideration of all those savings measures and I can’t recall in all honesty that we provided information that went to individual universities in any group.
Nash asked about the impact on the university sector in doing this and after further questioning, Griew said they do not normally talk to universities about it, “when considering options for the government in a budgetary nature.” “
We wouldn’t [do that] with any sector. “I couldn’t recall that we had done a breakdown of analysis on universities and campuses in the decision-making process,” he said.
Nash said it was extraordinary that the Labor government and the department seem to have no information on how the funding cuts will impact individual universities especially those in regional Australia.
