Andrew Giles
Scullin · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“We've got to continue to boost supply, and that's why we're investing so heavily in enabling infrastructure—the nuts and bolts, or, in this case, more the pipes and the power—to unlock 65,000 new homes, while maintaining incentives for new housing construction and for workers to do that work, too.”
“I'm so pleased to see that $37.4 million has been invested to continue upgrades along Donnybrook Road, cutting congestion and improving the flow of traffic for motorists in Melbourne's outer northern suburbs—less time on the road; more time to enjoy at home.”
“Today, I reflect on the Albanese government's budget handed down just last month—in particular what it means for the communities I'm so privileged and proud to represent as the member for Scullin.”
“We see in these conversations how our Labor government has been listening and using the opportunity and the obligation we have as the national government to make Australian lives better.”
“This builds on the work that we've done to make the cost of medicines cheaper, bringing PBS medicines down to a maximum cost of $25, or $7.70 for concession card holders.”
“That responds to a message that's been delivered to me very directly from young people right across the northern suburbs—younger people who might be renting or still living at home, saving up for a first home of their own—and from their parents and their grandparents, who worry that their kids won't be able to reach the milestone that the…”
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“But the last point I want to make—again, turning back to those who loved him the most: his family and his friends—is that, if we are to pay tribute to a life lived like Nick Bolkus's was, it's not so much the words we offer in tribute to him; it's how we conduct ourselves, those of us who sit in this place and the other place, and how well we follow his example in seeing our country as it is, imagining how it could be better and seeking to chart a path between those two things. Vale, Nick Bolkus.”
“As my friend Steve Georganas—I should use that name in this context—knows, our parliament looks and sounds very different today because of the trail that Nick Bolkus blazed. Nick Bolkus made a huge impact on behalf of the people of South Australia. He transformed the South Australian Labor Party and opened up my party as a better party of government of the centre left through his role organisationally and through encouraging so generously a generation of talented politicians, many of whom have made contributions in this debate. As a minister he changed lives and, in many ways, changed our country. He deserves to be remembered in this place.”
“Perhaps the immigration portfolio is unique in that I believe it does contain within it an ex-ministers' club, all of whom reflect on the significance and the weight of individual decisions that we have made, difficult decisions that shape lives and shape communities. I think, in how Nick Bolkus went about that work, he set a standard that all have aspired to follow but few have emulated successfully. In touching on those three things, I don't wish to think that his life should be defined by them. However, they have all left a really significant impact on this place and on the lives of all Australians. As others have recognised, Nick Bolkus made an extraordinary contribution to my party, the Australian Labor Party, in South Australia and around the country. His surname was also remarkable when he entered the Senate.”
“The Prime Minister and others have touched upon how he went about his work as minister for immigration, and it would be remiss of anyone not to reflect on the important series of actions he took in the aftermath of the horrors of Tiananmen Square. He combined, again, a sense of principled compassion and respect for human rights with a determination to see these principles put into practical effect, and I challenge anyone to think about how our country would be but for the decisions he made in 1989 and the years following. This is one example of how he carried out a very significant role and, I can say, a very challenging role—but also a rewarding role, as others have said.”
“What Nick Bolkus did was see our country as it is—or, indeed, as it was—see that recognised in our institutions and our cultural understanding and see ourselves through a clear-eyed lens, not looking back, not elevating nostalgia, but seeing us as we are. But he did more than that. He sought to imagine how we might be, how we could be a country in which everyone belongs, a country characterised by inclusion, belonging and respect. By putting down these markers, he made an extraordinary contribution to the country that I'm so proud to live in and to represent in this place today. His work carries on in this government through Minister Aly's great work, and, right across this nation, its imprint is felt. There are many Australians who have many reasons to be grateful for his contribution in that role.”
“In terms of citizenship, what Nick Bolkus did was to transform or, perhaps, realise Australian citizenship as that common bond that unites us all and to think about how we could celebrate the moment of acquiring citizenship as something that is as nation building as the construction of physical infrastructure, recognising that, in our country, our greatest strength is the unrivalled capacity of the Australian people. His elevating of citizenship takes me to the role that he played and his responsibilities in what was first called ethnic affairs and has since been reframed as multicultural affairs.”
“He leaves an indelible mark on the country that we live in today, and I want to touch on that through the lens of the role that he played as a minister, as a very significant part of the more than 25 years he spent serving diligently the people of South Australia in the other place—a time marked by an unusual adherence to a really clearly defined set of principles through which he approached his tasks in politics, but ensuring that those principles were always given a practical application, which I think is the very best of the movement that I'm proud to be a part of. Nick Bolkus's most significant impact was in portfolios that I had the privilege of holding for a period of time. Thinking about his impact, I want to touch on those three lenses of citizenship, multicultural affairs and immigration very briefly.”
“Beginning my remarks, I, of course, think mostly of his family—of his wife, Mary, who I had the privilege of working with in former capacities, and the daughters: Aria, who I mentioned earlier, and Mikayla, who gave a wonderful tribute that has been reflected on in this place already. For me, I find it difficult to overstate the significance of the influence the Hon. Nick Bolkus had on the Australian Labor Party, particularly its Left; on the state of South Australia; and indeed on the shape of our country.”
“I rise to associate myself with some wonderful remarks commemorating the life of a great Australian, Nick Bolkus—those remarks made by the Prime Minister; the Leader of the Opposition; my friend the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, very powerfully last night; and, of course the very moving tribute offered by the Minister for Health. I rise to make a few brief remarks associating myself and reflecting on the Hon. Nick Bolkus's legacy, and in doing so I remember that in December last year I had the opportunity to meet his daughter Aria in her capacity as South Australian Labor's candidate for Colton. I reflected then on some similarities that appeared to me and how wonderful it was to see a legacy continue in that family. It's tragic that only days afterwards Nick passed away.”
“But we can act now to enable the system to work better for students today and into the future, so that their learning journeys can reveal their full potential and that our national potential can be unleashed. For those reasons, I commend these bills to the House.”
“Alongside him are two new interim commissioners: the Hon. Fiona Nash, someone well known to this place and someone who is continuing to contribute to public life in the education sector, doing valuable work that is widely acknowledged as regional education commissioner; and, of course, Professor Tom Calma, who is the acting First Nations commissioner and someone who brings decades of experience in higher education, amongst other fields—a genuinely eminent Australian. The future success of this great country in large part rests on the success of our education and training system, and its ability to meet the needs of Australians and of Australia. This isn't and cannot be a set-and-forget proposition because we can't anticipate all the changes we will see in 10 or 20 years' time.”
“As jobs and skills commissioner, Professor Glover brought his decades of experience and leadership to the work of Jobs and Skills Australia—a critically important body that's not only conducting research and bringing together data but also helping us all to understand how it informs the future need of our workforce and the skilling needs of Australians. As I've spoken about previously, JSA research has highlighted how a more connected tertiary education system can lift productivity and the skill level of our workforce, and that better connections also help improve access to tertiary education, ensuring we grow the pipeline of Australians stepping into a certificate, a diploma or a degree. This work crosses over with the work of the interim ATEC, and I look forward to continuing to work with Professor Glover in these areas.”
“The interim ATEC has been operating for just over seven months now, and, subject to the passage of the legislation we are debating right now, its early work will soon be scaled up as it approaches full operations. With that in mind, I pay tribute to the extraordinary efforts of the interim commission over this early foundational period. In the first six months of its time, the interim ATEC was led by Professor Mary O'Kane AC as interim chief commissioner and Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt AO as interim First Nations commissioner, supported by Professor Barney Glover AO as the jobs and skills commissioner. I'm very pleased that Professor Glover will be able to continue his contribution, having stepped into the interim chief commissioner role.”
“Even if you're a student in Perth, you can readily benefit from the incredible courses and training and the knowledge that's been on offer in suburban Melbourne—and the other way around, too. It's a more joined-up and a more practically-oriented tertiary system in action, bringing together the extraordinary capacity of our TAFEs with a closer and more structured connection to higher education as well as industry. In Queensland, the TAFE Centre of Excellence Clean Energy Batteries and the Centre of Excellence Health Care and Support have launched the first round of applied research grants, bringing together TAFEs with universities, industry and community orgs to develop innovative new training in these critical fields. This is a big part of the future of tertiary education.”
“We're already seeing the work of these centres of excellence in action and making a difference, like the TAFE centre of excellence for the future of housing construction, which last year welcomed its first group of students participating in a pilot program to learn how to apply modern methods of construction. The short course introduces students to prefabrication, modular construction and volumetric construction. Learning isn't here only for those on site who are benefiting from newly refurbished spaces. What sets the centres of excellence apart is how they are equipped to share their specialisations with students and teachers across the country, as the national TAFE network will also help us do—a network now including all Australian jurisdictions.”
“On this note, I want to highlight an area of work in my portfolio responsibilities that I am proud of because it shows how we can break down these barriers in practice. This is through TAFE centres of excellence. There are 14 of these which have been announced so far, and there are more on the way, bringing together governments, TAFEs, universities, industry and other stakeholders to develop specialised courses and skills in areas of priority for our country: modern forms of housing construction, electric vehicles, cybersecurity, health care and support, and net zero manufacturing.”
“Similarly, the partnership between TAFE NSW and Western Sydney University is removing barriers for TAFE students entering into university degrees through a single enrolment package and putting in place appropriate student supports to make this as seamless as possible. TAFE NSW Meadowbank campus has forged a partnership with Macquarie University, Microsoft and the University of Technology Sydney to establish the Institute of Applied Technology Digital, a place for students to upskill and expand knowledge in cyber, AI, software and data analytics through bite-sized microskill courses and practical microcredential courses. It's great to see TAFEs and universities jumping at these opportunities, and it's this kind of forward thinking our government hopes to support through the ATEC.”
“In developing a tertiary roadmap, the ATEC will plot the next steps for those who seek to move between university and vocational education—a system to support students to gain qualifications that are matched to the skills needs across our diverse communities. It will build on and support the work that we already see progressing in the sector, like that of the University of Canberra and the Canberra Institute of Technology, who have introduced guaranteed pathways from diploma to degree across courses like nursing, early childhood education and care, accounting and project management.”
“To achieve this, we need to set the system up to meet the modern needs of Australians. At the very core of this is breaking down those artificial barriers that have separated our university and vocational education systems. As I said at the National Press Club last year, these are 'a barrier to meeting the needs of our modern economy, and that contributes to skills mismatches and shortages in critical areas'. We can make it easier for Australians to get the right skills in whatever combination that might be, bring together the very best of both pathways that work for students and unlock the breadth of opportunities that will allow us to grow our country's productivity. This is where the ATEC can and will play an essential role.”
“This was, of course, a recommendation from the Australian Universities Accord, a blueprint that tells us about the kind of work that we need to get on with doing to set up the system for the next 20 years and those structural reforms that we need to pursue: building stronger links between vocational education and universities, allocating funding under the new Managed Growth Funding System, implementing needs based funding within the core funding model and negotiating mission based compacts to support the sector. Fundamentally, what the accord tells us is that, in the coming years, there will be more jobs requiring more skills and requiring vocational qualifications, higher education qualifications or both. Australia needs to grow the number of Australians with a tertiary qualification to four in five.”
“Labor is the party of education and of training. We know the power of education and training, which transform lives and transform communities. As the Minister for Skills and Training, I'm very proud of the work of this government, particularly that of the Minister for Education, to ensure that our tertiary education system—both university education and vocational education—is in the best shape for Australians now and well into the future. The Australian Tertiary Education Commission is a key piece of the puzzle in this regard.”
“Australians have sent a really clear message at the last two elections. They backed free TAFE. That's why we legislated for free TAFE, and, starting next year, it will be permanent so Australians right around the country can continue to get skills they want to do the jobs we need.”
“When students say free TAFE has been lifechanging, those of us in this place should listen. On that note, the member also asked me about the future of free TAFE and risks, and I can say to everyone on this side of the House that the future is secure. More Australians under us can do what Ryan has done and set themselves up for life, but those opposite, who used to in coalition, haven't been listening to people like Ryan. They're too busy arguing amongst themselves, but they can agree on one thing—they hate free TAFE. The Leader of the Opposition thinks Australians don't value it, and they would cut free TAFE and, with it, the benefits that hundreds of thousands of Australians have seen. Let me be very clear about this. This Albanese government will always stand up for free TAFE.”
“To celebrate the third birthday, I had the opportunity to catch up with some students past and present to hear about how free TAFE has helped set them up for their futures. In particular, I heard from Ryan from Croydon in the Deakin electorate, who started his working life as a trade apprentice but was injured. He told me that, at this stage, even though he wasn't earning because of this injury, free TAFE meant that he could actually, in his words, give it a shot and see if he enjoyed this change of course. And now, thanks to his cert IV in cyber, he's got a job in that field and is really contributing to Australia's future, one of near 70,000 enrolments in tech and digital courses playing their part in helping Australians navigate the online world and helping others to stay safe.”
“Thank you to the member for Deakin for the question. Every day in this place we see what a wise decision the people of Deakin made last May. He came to this place having been a teacher and saw first-hand the power of education changing people's lives. And he knows, as we all do on this side of the House, that Labor is the party of education and the party of training, and we're the party of TAFE too, which is why I'm so excited to be celebrating the third birthday of free TAFE. There's much to celebrate. There are 725,000 enrolments in courses, which is building that pipeline of workers Australia needs, whether it's nurses, construction workers, tech workers, early childhood educators and so many more. And, already, 210,000 courses have been completed, with plenty more to come.”
“We redouble our efforts, too, to look for those acts of kindness, to build a deeper, shared understanding across our communities and to strengthen our social cohesion at this time because we must keep looking towards the light, even—I would say especially—when darkness tries to crowd it out.”
“For me, it is these stories that remind us of the strength and the compassion that really define what it means to be an Australian. Today, as a parliament, we pause and remember 15 lives murdered: Edith Brutman, Dan Elkayam, Boris and Sofia Gurman, Alex Kleytman, Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, Peter Meagher, Reuven Morrison, Marika Pogany, young Matilda, Rabbi Eli Schlanger, Adam Smyth, Boris Tetleroyd, Tania Tretiak and Tibor Weitzen. We acknowledge—and I acknowledge on behalf of the people of the Scullin electorate in particular—the pain that is ongoing for families and friends, and for a community scarred and forever changed. We listen and we seek through listening to deepen our understanding and our reservoir of empathy. We reject hate, and we reject those who seek to degrade and dehumanise their fellow citizens.”
“We must remember the responsibility that comes with the extraordinary privilege each of us shares—to show leadership that is resolute, considered and empathetic; fundamentally, to recognise our responsibility to bring people together—and, in doing so, recognise the peculiarly Australian light that shone through the darkness on 14 December. There were those extraordinary acts of bravery—the lifeguards and the locals who rushed to provide first aid, the work of the police and other first responders who put themselves in harm's way to protect others, and, of course, the acts of everyday Australians, most notably Ahmed al-Ahmed, who stepped forward in so many acts, big and small, to help those in need and in danger.”
“What we've been building together is precious: a place where everyone belongs; a place indelibly marked by the contribution of Jewish Australians; a place which offered something much more than just safety to so many Jewish refugees a couple of generations ago; a place where people can be proud of who they are; and a place where they can freely and safely practice their faith, as Jewish Australians should have been able to do on 14 December before that murderous act of terror, which has already taken an extraordinary toll—15 lives taken and a community in shock and grief. But this toll cannot extend to tarnishing what makes our country unique: the strength of our diversity, underpinned by our respect for each and every one of us. For those of us in this place, we must come together to tackle the evil that is antisemitism.”
“These messages of hope now carry, for all of us, a much deeper meaning as we come together—as we should in this place, Australia's parliament—to mourn the victims, to share our collective condolences with family and friends, to stand with the Jewish Australian community in their grief, and to bear witness and assume responsibility. Last month the Jewish community stood strong, continuing to mark Hannukah, determined to shine light into what must have felt like an overwhelming darkness. This resilience demands more than just our admiration. Australia has been—and remains, in my view—the most successful multicultural society.”
“Sunday 14 December will forever remain in our nation's memory as a day of loss and of sorrow. Hundreds were down at Bondi that afternoon, celebrating together by the sea. But their joy was shattered by an act of terror that stole the lives of 15 Australians: an attack on Jewish Australians and on the very idea of Australia itself. It was an act designed to spread fear and sow division, an act of deliberate antisemitic hate. The day was not chosen by chance. Jewish Australians had come together to celebrate the beginning of Hanukkah, a festival that brings light into darkness—a time for family, a time for community and for resilience.”
“We were so fortunate to have Nicole and Gracie from BreastScreen Victoria attend to share expert advice on what to look for, how to minimise risks and even to book on-the-spot breast screen appointments, something that was really welcomed by community members. They reminded us that early detection is the most effective way to prevent serious illness or death, making the Commonwealth funded BreastScreen Australia a crucial piece of our national fight against breast cancer. So I want to thank my electorate office team for organising this event and, in particular, for bringing together some diverse community leaders who can be trusted sources of advice to women who might otherwise not have been persuaded to take this vital step for themselves, for their families and for our community.”
“I also want to recognise and thank women from right across the Scullin electorate for the really incredible response to the pink ribbon morning tea that my office and I hosted a couple of weeks ago, focused, as many others around the country are, on raising money for and also, critically, raising awareness about breast cancer. This is an incredibly important cause, one that probably touches everyone in this building and everyone across the communities that we represent. Breast cancer, of course, carries a lifetime diagnosis. The risk is one in seven for women and one in 612 for men. It's a cause that I'm proud to support.”
“So I'm very grateful to my friend the Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care and Assistant Minister for Women, Rebecca White, who was at the Epping Endometriosis and Pelvic Pain Clinic, where she announced an additional 11 endo and pelvic pain clinics to be rolled out across Australia, making a huge difference in those communities—the same difference, the same impact that I have seen in the northern suburbs. Australians in the northern suburbs of Melbourne and right around the country understand that Labor is the party of Medicare and only an Albanese Labor government can be trusted to strengthen it and the social compact that depends on access to healthcare.”
“I'm pleased to say the response right across my community has been incredibly positive, because people remember the threat of the GP tax. People remember the impact of the Medicare freezes, but, thanks to Labor's changes, all that people need in the Scullin electorate or right around Australia to access high-quality GP services is their Medicare card. The work that we've done to back in GP services complements the existing and fully bulk-billed Epping Medicare urgent care clinic, which saw over 14,000 presentations in its first year of operation, making a huge difference. I also want to recognise the Endometriosis and Pelvic Pain Clinic, which has been providing women right across Melbourne's northern suburbs access to a service that provides specialised care in a community that for too long was denied access to this kind of service.”
“The Albanese government is delivering better access to affordable healthcare services across Melbourne's northern suburbs. On 1 November, our government rolled out the single largest investment in Medicare's history—an expansion of the bulk-billing incentive to all Australians so that more people, including people across all of the suburbs that I represent, can see a GP for free. This is an investment that will deliver an additional 18 million bulk-billed visits each year nationwide. I visited the Epping Plaza Medical and Dental Centre, one of six clinics in my electorate that returned to full bulk-billing on 1 November, bringing the total number of fully bulk-billing clinics in the Scullin electorate to 13.”
“There are now more than 725,000 free TAFE enrolments—725,000—and more than 210,000 course completions. The Minister for Housing will be pleased to know that construction courses are now the third most popular type of free TAFE courses, with more than 59,000 enrolments, people going on to build the houses Australians need, including CIT students the Prime Minister and I met with today—Yao, Ruby and Josh. It's people like them, together with more nurses to care for Australians and more early childhood educators, too. This is why our government made free TAFE permanent. But the Leader of the Opposition and members opposite don't like free TAFE. We know the Leader of the Opposition and her coalition will talk it down at every opportunity, ignoring the stories—”
“It's not only facilities that we're rolling out for TAFE students that the member may be interested in hearing about. Our government is also rolling out cost-of-living relief to ensure that Australians can get the skills they want for the jobs that we need. Australian apprentices and VET students are among those around the country hearing from the ATO about the Albanese government's 20 per cent cut to student debt that's being applied to their accounts right now. That's thousands of dollars that many of these students are saving on student debt. This is a pretty special bit of news to those of us on this side of the House and those millions of Australians anyway, news that we're proud to deliver because we know it makes a big difference in the lives of Australians. But, of course, that's not all. Free TAFE is reaching new heights.”
“I thank my friend the member for Hasluck for her question. It was fantastic to be with her in her electorate last week to open the brand-new clean energy training facilities at Midland TAFE, something she fought for and won. It was also great to hear from local students about how much they value the opportunities that free TAFE is providing them. The Albanese government has put TAFE back at the heart of skills and training because it belongs there and always should've belonged there. We're backing in the hard work of TAFE students like those that the member for Hasluck and I met last week, and their amazing teachers too, by updating TAFE facilities through our government's TAFE Technology Fund, which includes $3.24 million for Midland. Great Western Australian students like Timothy, Brock and Kudakwashe are benefiting from our investment.”
“The only thing members opposite can agree on is what they will oppose, not what they will do for Australians, while, on this side of the House, we're easing cost-of-living pressures for students to gain skills they want, for jobs we need now and into the future, building their careers while building the homes Australians need, and enabling our clean energy aspirations, because all of us in the Albanese government back Australians to get skills they want in the jobs they need. So, while the Liberals and the Nationals are obsessed with their internal arguments over net zero, they've got 'net zero' to say when it comes to skilling Australians for the jobs of the future. They are arguing amongst themselves while we are focusing on the Australian people.”
“We've also made free TAFE into law, following 685,000 enrolments and more than 190,000 completions. These are measures delivering cost-of-living support now, while helping Australians secure the future. Something these three measures have in common is that they were all opposed by members on the other side of the House. It could be the last time that they will be on a unity ticket.”
“On the average VET loan, this is a saving of more than $2,000. This is real cost-of-living relief, right now. While it's easy to focus on these numbers, because they are important, behind them are stories of Australians who are just trying to get ahead and make a contribution. I think about students like Jennifer from CIT, who I met with the Prime Minister here. She'll have $8,000 slashed from her debt. She says to me that it's a huge weight off her shoulders and now she can focus on finishing off her studies. And then there's Ralph, who's studying for a Diploma of Nursing. He'll save $3,000, thanks to this Albanese Labor government. And, of course, we haven't stopped here. We've reduced the amount that Australians with a student debt have to pay every year and raised the threshold when people need to start repaying.”
“I want to thank my friend the member for Boothby for her question and, more particularly, for the work that she's doing in the community she represents so well in Adelaide. She has spent her career backing people in, and she brings that here with enthusiasm. While those opposite are divided—now more than ever if what I keep reading in the Financial Review is to be believed—this Albanese government is getting on with it and breaking down the barriers that have been holding Australians back. It's 12 months to the day since Labor announced we would cut student debt by 20 per cent and six months to the day since Australians backed us in at the May election, because there are three million Australians who have a student debt, including over 280,000 who have VET student loans or Australian apprenticeship support loan accounts.”
“Ensuring VET student loans are accessible and administered with integrity is critical to helping Australians gain the skills and qualifications to build our future, strengthen our workforce, and support long-term national prosperity. Further details of the measure in the bill are set out in the explanatory memorandum. I commend the bill to the House. Debate adjourned.”
“The VET Student Loans program makes vocational education and training more accessible to Australians by providing opportunities for students to undertake a VET course—diploma level and above— and defer the payment of tuition fees through an income contingent loan. The program helps to address skills shortages across critical industries including engineering, occupational licensing trades like plumbing, carpentry and electrical work, and training and assessment. There is no change to the way students apply for a VET student loan using the electronic Commonwealth assistance form (eCAF). I confirm to the House that, since the VET Student Loans program commenced in 2017, there have been no student complaints related to the handling of tax file numbers (TFNs) for the purposes of administering the program.”
“That scheme operated under the Higher Education Support Act 2003, which allowed VET FEE-HELP and Higher Education Loan Program providers to handle students' tax file numbers (TFNs) for the purpose of administering loans. In 2017, the VET FEE-HELP scheme was replaced by the VET Student Loans (VSL) program. While the VET Student Loans program operates under its own legislative framework—the VET Student Loans Act 2016—it continued to use the same IT systems platforms. This bill is important because VET plays a huge role in building the skilled workforce Australia needs—now and into the future.”
“It also authorises the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations' previous disclosure of tax file numbers to providers for the same purpose. The measure applies to all current and former VSL providers and their officers who handled tax file numbers from 1 January 2017 to 30 September 2025. It also extends to other relevant parties, including the secretary of the department, the Commissioner of Taxation, and Commonwealth officers. By clarifying the basis for these past practices, the bill ensures the VET Student Loans program remains both accessible to students and compliant—supporting confidence in the system and the delivery of quality vocational education. Income contingent loans for vocational education and training (VET) students were first introduced in 2008, under the former VET FEE-HELP scheme.”
“During a review of how VET student loans are administered, the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations identified that there was no clear role for VSL providers to handle tax file numbers under the VSL Act and stronger alignment between relevant IT systems and legislation was required. We have taken action to fix this. Since early 2025, the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations has implemented updates to the IT systems to mask VSL students' tax file numbers and automate the transfer of tax file numbers between the student interface and government systems. So now VSL providers no longer need to handle tax file numbers. This bill includes a retrospective measure to authorise VSL providers' past handling of student tax file numbers (TFNs) for the purpose of administering loan applications and VET student loans.”
“I move: That this bill be now read a second time. Today, I introduce the VET Student Loans (Miscellaneous Measures) Bill 2025. The bill ensures that VET Student Loans (VSL) providers were authorised to handle students' tax file numbers (TFNs) to administer the VET Student Loans program. The VET Student Loans Act 2016 (VSL Act) governs both the eligibility criteria for students seeking a loan and the requirements that providers must meet, to participate in the program. Students are required—under the VSL Act—to provide their tax file number (TFN) when submitting a loan application, as repayments are made through the tax system. The TFN is essential to ensure the student's loan application details align with their Australian Taxation Office account.”
“What a shameful and contemptuous thing to say to the hundreds of thousands of Australians who are directly benefiting from free TAFE and making their contribution to their communities! The coalition haven't listened and they haven't learned. Australians know that only a united Albanese Labor government will back free TAFE and deliver Australians the skills they want for the jobs that we need. (Time expired)”