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Revelations the Government has sought costings on a universal tertiary student allowance has reignited debate on whether it is a good idea.
Student groups have long called for all tertiary students to get an allowance, as is NZ First and Green Party policy.
Students argue that they are
being over-burdened by tertiary loans and the cost of living is high.
Tertiary Education Minister Pete Hodgson yesterday confirmed, following a story in the Press newspaper, that he asked officials to look at how much the proposal would cost.
The Education Ministry came back with $728 million a year.
The Press said the $728m net extra cost of such a plan was based on removing existing costs of the scheme and factoring in an expected reduction in student loans.
During the 2005 election campaign Labour scored significant points with students and their parents by offering interest-free tertiary loans.
Pete Hodgson yesterday said Labour's policy had not changed.
"Labour's oft-stated policy remains one of moving progressively towards a universal student allowance rather than directly to one."
Mr Hodgson said he asked for the costing this year in preparation for questions in the lead up to the May Budget. About 57 per cent of students get an allowance and about 47,000 of fulltime students miss out because they earn too much or, for students aged under 25, their parents' income is too high to qualify.
Green Party tertiary education spokeswoman Metiria Turei said the Government should provide a timetable for moving to universal allowances. "Maybe toying with student livelihoods is just political game playing, but student debt is no fun at all for the generation which has grown up struggling with debt repayments, let alone trying to buy houses or start families," Mrs Turei said.
The NZ Vice-Chancellors' Committee said speculation about the universal allowance was unhelpful and the country was spending well over the OECD average on student financial support.
The committee said funding for tertiary students was more than twice the rate it was for tertiary education institutions. Forty-two per cent of tertiary education spending went to student financial support, compared with an OECD average of 18 per cent.
Norman LaRocque, policy adviser for education lobby group Education Forum, agreed with the university vice-chancellors.
"Putting money into student support, rather than into funding for TEIs [tertiary education institutions], would do nothing to improve the performance of the tertiary education sector in New Zealand," he said.
The student allowance is $122 a week for those under 25 and living at home, $153 a week for those living away from home, and $184 for those aged over 25. May's Budget gave a 10 per cent increase in the parental income threshold and lowered the age for parental income testing to 24.
Ministry documents show that since 2001 there has been a 32 per cent fall in the number of students eligible for allowances as parents' incomes have risen.
- NZPA
