Press Conference - Auburn

JASON CLARE, MINISTER FOR EDUCATION: G'day everyone. Thanks very much for coming along. I think this sign says it all. If Labor wins the next election, we’ll cut student debt by 20 per cent. It'll be the first piece of legislation that we introduce to the Parliament after the election and it'll cut the debt of three million Aussies. Today we're releasing information on what this means in every state and territory across the country and how much average debt people will see cut if we win the next election.

What this means for a person with the average student debt is we'll cut their debt by over 5,000 bucks. That's real money. That'll make a real difference. And if you've got a student debt of $50,000 it will mean that debt is cut by $10,000. That'll help a lot of some people in their 20s, in their 30s, who’ve just finished uni, got their first job. They might have just moved out of home and are just getting started. Labor will cut your student debt by 20 per cent. 

Now compare that to Peter Dutton. The only policy that he's got to help people with the cost of living is this crazy idea that says that he wants taxpayers to pay for their boss' lunch. Labor will cut your debt. The Liberals want you to pick up the boss' tab. It's as basic as that.

Today I can also announce that the Student Ombudsman has started work. This is a national first, a National Student Ombudsman. You ask why we need this? Well, the evidence is compelling. One in 20 students at university report being raped. One in six students say they've been the victims of sexual harassment and one in two say that when they complain to their university, nothing happens. Now for too long, universities have failed their students on this front and previous governments have failed students as well. 

I want to give a quick shout out to organisations like End Rape on Campus, STOP and Fair Agenda for never giving up and for fighting for this. For wanting a Student Ombudsman to make sure that when the worst happens to students, that there's somewhere to go to report, to see that real action happens. And that's what this Student Ombudsman is all about. They start work today.

But it's just the first step. The next step is legislation that I'll introduce to the Parliament next week to give me the power as the Minister for Education to set up a National Code that will set rules that universities need to comply with. That includes requiring vice chancellors to report to their boards every six months on the actions that they're taking here, making sure that their staff are properly trained to do the investigations they need to do and to make sure that this Ombudsman's recommendations have real teeth. This Code will mean that when the Ombudsman makes a recommendation about what a university has to do, this Code will require them to implement it. This is real change that's long overdue and it's finally happening. Happy to take questions.

JOURNALIST: Thanks, Minister. It's Amanda from Nine here. Just a couple on the second announcement, what kind of powers will the Ombudsman actually have to compel universities to do anything at this stage?

CLARE: The National Student Ombudsman will have the same sort of powers as a Royal Commission does. It'll have the power to go into university, it'll have the power to get documents, it'll have the power to compel people to give evidence. But not only that, the laws that I'll introduce into the Parliament this week are the next step. They will make sure that when the Ombo makes a recommendation, that it's implemented. There are ombudsmen all around the country at the moment doing different things. They have the power to make recommendations, but they don't have the power to make sure they're implemented. This Ombudsman will, and they will because of the Code that we will introduce legislation to make real this week.

JOURNALIST: And you talked a bit about sexual assault on campus there but antisemitism has also been a huge issue over the last couple of months, if not years. So, will the Ombudsman have any kind of powers to try and stop the antisemitism that we're seeing on university campuses?

CLARE: The short answer to that is yes. The powers of this Ombudsman are broader than just dealing with complaints from students about sexual assault, sexual harassment and sexual violence. They'll be able to deal with complaints from students about antisemitism or any sort of discrimination or hate that students experience at university. I want our students to be safe. And that's what the job of this Ombudsman is, to make sure that when the worst happens to students that there's action that can be taken.

JOURNALIST: Minister, it's Josh from Seven News. Just on the debt bill, you said will be the first bill you'll introduce in the new Parliament. Why not do it in the next two weeks and give students certainty that their debts will be reduced?

CLARE: We've made it very clear when the Prime Minister announced this policy late last year that this is a policy we would take to the next election. We've made it clear to 3 million Aussies right across the country that have got a HECS debt that if Labor wins the next election, we will cut your debt by 20 per cent. And this will make a big difference to 3 million Aussies right across the country. What's the Liberal Party got to offer? They oppose this, Josh. This is the thing people have got to remember when we announced this, the Liberal Party said that they would oppose this. So, if the Liberals win the next Election, this will never happen. We're making it very clear here today, if Labor wins the next Election, we'll cut your student debt by 20 per cent.

JOURNALIST: The PM and Opposition Leader are both at a Lunar New Year event in the electorate of Chisholm today, how important will the Chinese-Australian vote be at the next election? It seems both sides are doing their best to court that vote.

JASON CLARE: I think everyone's vote's going to be critical. You know, in a couple of months time, all Australians will get a chance to vote. They'll get a chance to choose who they want to run the country for the next three years. And I think the choice is clear. There's a choice between a Labor government which is acting to help people with the real pressures that they're under, with the cost of living through tax cuts for every taxpayer, through a $300 energy rebate, through things like the things I'm talking about today, cutting your student debt by 20 per cent, or the Liberal Party that have no real answers at all. And the only policy that they've got on this is to make taxpayers’ pay for their boss' lunch. You know, how crazy is that? This policy is that insane, they had to put out a statement the other day saying it won't apply to brothels or strip clubs. When you have to put out a statement like that, I think that shows just how insane this policy is. It shows that Peter Dutton hasn't any real answers for the challenges the Australian people face.

JOURNALIST: The Trump administration has announced again that it's going to proceed with tariffs on China. How concerned is the government considering China's obvious trading economy?

CLARE: You're right. China is our biggest trading partner. And the work that we've done with China over the last two years, over the last two and a half years, has helped to remove those trade barriers with China. That's creating jobs here in Australia. When you remove trade barriers for the exports that we sell to China, whether it's meat or wine or anything else, it creates jobs for farmers, it creates jobs for Aussie workers and that's a good thing. I think one in four jobs in Australia are related to trade. The things that we dig out of the ground, the things we grow, the things we make and create for our jobs here in Australia. I'd just make the other important point about trade with the US and that is Australia is different to most countries around the world in that America has a trade surplus with Australia. America sells us more than we sell them.

JOURNALIST: It's Pablo here from the ABC. Just back on the Ombudsman. The Coalition is being quite critical of the government's response to anti-Semitism in universities. Have you spoken with the Opposition and do you expect the support on the introduction of this Ombudsman?

CLARE: The Liberal Party had 10 years to act here and they did bugger all. They did nothing. For 10 years, organisations like End Rape on Campus and STOP and Fair Agenda have been knocking on doors in Parliament House asking for politicians to listen, asking for politicians to act. And the Liberal Party slammed the door on these organisations that are fighting for victims and survivors of sexual assault. I've listened and I've acted. That's why we've got the Parliament to pass laws to create this Student Ombudsman. It should have happened years ago. It's finally happening because a Labor government listened and is acting. I hope that the Liberal Party will support this legislation.

JOURNALIST: And the former boss of the Home Affairs Department, Mike Pezzullo, has been quite critical of the Coalition's response to the rise in antisemitism and he's calling for an Operation Sovereign Borders type, multi agency campaign to combat this. Is this something that the government should consider?

CLARE: The bottom line here is that governments take the advice of our law enforcement agencies on this. Now law enforcement agencies are working hand in glove across the country. Federal agencies and state agencies, federal police, state police, our security agencies, they're all working closely together and can I give them a shout out. As a former Minister for Home Affairs and a former Minister for Justice, I know how important the work they do is. I've got 100 per cent confidence in the work that they're doing. The work that they're doing is helping to keep Australians safe. The work that they're doing is helping to hunt down the perpetrators of these violent evil acts and make sure that they're locked up. And I back them and I hope that everybody else does too.

JOURNALIST: Just one more from me, Josh from Seven News. Earlier this week, Peter Dutton claimed the Coalition would be a better friend of China than the Albanese Government. Do you think that claim has any credibility? And should Peter Dutton outline what he's going to do to improve the relationship?

CLARE: I think that's laughable. Just Google what Peter Dutton has said about China over the last 10 years and you'll realise how ridiculous that statement is.

JOURNALIST: That's all the questions we have. Thanks so much for taking us on the phone.

CLARE: Good on you. Cheers. Thanks, guys.