On April 9, a mostly-empty New South Wales Legislative Assembly debated whether student concession fares should be extended to international and part-time students. The debate was triggered by a petition started by the SRC and SUPRA late last year when it reached 20,000 signatures in March.
Besides student organisations, universities, the City of Sydney council, and MPs from the Greens and crossbench have all publically supported the proposal. NSW Greens MP Jenny Leong, who campaigned for the extension of concession fares during her 2006 stint as SUPRA President, presented the petition to parliament.
In an initial response to the petition, transport minister Jo Haylen MP noted that international students have to prove they are financially self-sufficient to get a visa and that part-time students can work more than full time ones.
Leong opened the proceeding by thanking the signatories. She labelled the exclusion of part-time and international students from concession fares as a discrimination that “absolutely can no longer be ignored.” She noted that previous student leaders who campaigned for concessions are now among the government ranks.
Leong referenced a 2006 New South Wales Administrative Decisions Tribunal ruling which found that excluding full fee-paying overseas university students from public transport concessions contravenes the 1977 Anti-Discrimination Act. The NSW Government exempted the Transport Administration Act from the Anti-Discrimination Act following that ruling.
Leong referenced Haylen’s purported prior support for expanding student concessions during her time in opposition, when she allegedly described the current system as “outdated and unfair” in a private statement.
In her response, Haylen noted fiscal pressures on the government, and stated that the government’s focus is on improving public transport services “to the benefit of everybody”. She indicated she would be open to working on the matter in future budgets.
Minister for Tertiary Education Steve Whan also noted “cost pressures on the system” while expressing the states appreciation for international students.
Whan agreed that the benefits international students bring to Australia need to be highlighted by the government. He pointed to negative publicity surrounding foreign students and conceded they faced particular challenges.
Independent MP Alex Greenwich noted that over a third of international students in Australia study in NSW, mostly in Sydney, and called them “a vital part of our economy.”
“They spend billions in student tuition fees, providing the main source of income for universities, vital to maintaining our world class tertiary education system.”
“[International students] who work are often on the minimum wage, working limited hours” and paying high rent, Greenwich said. “They are no more financially well-off than local students.”
Greenwich argued that the cost of the policy “could be modest, especially after counting the benefits [that] international students… bring to our city.”
Cessnock Labor MP Clayton Barr said the approach to concessions for part-time and international students “is consistent in every state.”
“The NSW Government significantly subsidises public transport services and those who cannot access travel concessions are able to access the same benefits as other adult residents.”
“NSW is facing a significant economic challenge,” Barr said, arguing that “the budget in NSW has been left in a dire and perilous state by the former government.”
“There is currently work underway by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal to revise Opal pricing.”
After accepting submissions and consulting with stakeholders, public hearings are expected to be held by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal in June.
Speaking to this masthead following the debate, Leong said that “the government is feeling very uncomfortable about having to not support this petition and the delivery of travel concessions for international students and part-time students.”
“That is a good sign, that’s a sign that they are wanting to try and find a way to move through this… we know that there are Labor backbenchers that are pressuring [the government]”.
SUPRA President Weihong Liang observed little change in matters concerning concessions versus twenty years ago. Nonetheless, Liang remarked that Haylen’s comments were “better than just a no.”
The campaign for expanded concessions is expected to continue, with the SRC, SUPRA, and the USU all maintaining the policy as part of their respective platforms.