Australian Politics
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
‘Starving, extreme pain’: Young mum’s ‘inhumane’ treatment at Queensland hospital laid bare
The joys of government healthcare. I once had a similar painful problem: kidney stones. I took a taxi to my usual private hospital and was on the operating table within hours. The woman below could have got similar treatment if Queensland Health fired some of its many bureaucrats and redirected the funds into employing more doctors and nursesTorrens University pushes private sector path to higher education targets
Australia’s only for-profit university is besting its sandstone rivals in taking on more Aboriginal, female and poorer students, as its chancellor warns the nation will fail to meet the goals of a landmark review into higher education if doesn’t embrace a new model of private universities.
Torrens University chancellor Jim Varghese said the targets set out in the recent Universities Accord report – that 80 per cent of the population aged 25 to 34 should have at least a tertiary qualification and 55 per cent should have a university degree by 2050 – would not be possible with public institutions alone.
He has called for a shake-up of the tertiary sector, which has been dominated by government-funded institutions, arguing that without competitive private alternatives there will not be enough places. The Accord report estimates an additional 940,000 Commonwealth supported places will be required to reach the university attainment goal by 2050.
“It is not possible unless you get the private sector actively involved,” Mr Varghese said.
“Unless you have a private higher education sector working hand in glove in competition, it will become very bureaucratic, very difficult and we won’t reach that very ambitious and laudable target.”
As Australia’s only for-profit higher education institution with university status reaches its 10-year anniversary, a new Deloitte report has found Torrens University was already leading the way on the access and equity goals set out in the Accord’s final report released last month.
The report found 25 per cent of its students were from disadvantaged backgrounds, compared to 12 per cent of Group of Eight universities; 19 per cent were from regional areas, compared to 9 per cent at the Go8; and 3 per cent were Indigenous, compared to 1 per cent at sandstone universities.
It also found that Torrens University – which is owned by US company Strategic Education – had added $468.9m in value to the Australian economy and supported more than 3000 jobs, all without any investment from the government.
Torrens University president Linda Brown said it was the nation’s fastest-growing university, expanding from 165 to 24,000 students in a decade, and had built its brand by scrapping the requirement for an entry score, attracting non-traditional students and offering flexible study options.
She said the university also focused on offering degrees in high demand areas including health, nursing, hospitality, education and business, and was becoming a leader in artificial intelligence. “I believe that we should be allowing investors to invest in universities, all universities – people should be able to raise private money for public good,” she said.
“I also believe that individuals should put their hand in their pocket because they’re getting the return on investment and the benefit for that, so there should be more individual investment,” Ms Brown added. “And there should be government investment … one plus one plus one is much better than relying on funding from one source for 90 per cent of the market.”
Ms Brown said Torrens had attracted international students from 150 nationalities, warning Labor’s crackdown on student visa holders using the pathway to work rather than study could harm the nation’s reputation.
“We will manage whatever is coming, but this uncertainty or drip feeding of changes is not great for our reputation as a country for being open for business for international students,” she said.
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Submissions for Draft Legislation on Homeschooling
From Left-wing unions
Submissions are closing on proposed legislation changes to Homeschooling.
On the 6th of March proposed homeschooling legislation was tabled in the Queensland state Parliament. You can read the bill here.
Qld statistics show the increase in the last 5 years
CLOSE TO 300% INCREASE IN HOME-SCHOOLING!
Parents see an issue with the current curriculum, which is why families are choosing to homeschool. Government needs to look at the reason why there has been an almost 300% increase in home-schooling, not try to stamp it out.
The main points of concern are:
Homeschooling families must use the National Curriculum and it will require homeschool educators to report on all subject areas in the curriculum.
There is concerning wording in the legislation
(da)for chapter 9, part 5, home education of a child or young person should be provided in a way that —
(i)is in the best interests of the child or young person taking into account their safety and wellbeing; and
(ii)ensures the child or young person receives a high-quality education;
Who decides what is in the best interest of our own children?
If this bill passes in its current form, it will no longer be the parents who look after the best interest of their children, but unelected bureaucrats under the thumb of the governments and their corporate controllers.
Any legislation which takes the rights and decision away from the parents, is a direct attack on our freedoms and aimed at creating an environment in which the government has control over our families.
Via email
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Net overseas migration likely to surpass 375,000 by June, experts and Coalition say
Immigration experts and the Coalition have warned Australia is not on track to cut the net overseas migration (NOM) number to 375,000 by June 30 under current policy conditions, with questions raised over whether the government will need to further tighten rules around international students or begin targeting other temporary visa holders like working holiday makers.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics released figures last week showing the NOM had totalled 548,000 in the year to September 30, prompting backlash from the opposition, which accused the government of running a “big Australia” policy.
But Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil said the figures did not capture the many policies Labor had introduced to curb the NOM to 375,000 by June.
Opposition immigration spokesman Dan Tehan warned the NOM target was getting progressively out of reach.
“The Australians who are struggling to find a place to live or pay the rent want to hear a commitment from the Albanese government that they will meet expectations and cut NOM to 375,000 this financial year,” he said.
“They still have no answer to the question: where will all these people live?”
According to Coalition analysis, to reduce the NOM to 375,000 by June, the government would need to ensure NOM was no more than 76,600 over the remaining three-quarters in the 2023-24 financial year.
Figures also showed a total of 2,214,695 temporary visa holders in Australia as of January 31, not counting tourist and crew visa-holders, representing a reduction of 3.23 per cent since September.
The Coalition estimates that to meet the NOM estimate, there will need to be a reduction of 27 per cent by the end of the 2023-24 financial year.
A spokesman for Ms O’Neil said the migration data recorded so far was in line with all expectations, indicating confidence the government would reduce the NOM to 375,000 by June.
“This data does not capture the measures the government has introduced to get migration back down to sustainable levels and restore integrity to our international education sector,” the spokesman said.
Former deputy secretary of the Department of Immigration, Abul Rizvi, said he would be surprised if the government curbed NOM at the rate it hoped to, arguing the figure would be more like “400,000 to 500,000” by the middle of the year.
He noted student visa holders – which are significantly driving up NOM – totalled 571,000 by January 24 while net student arrivals in February 24 were over 147,000.
“Total students in Australia (is) likely over 700,000 for the first time in … history,” he said in a post on X.
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Canberra to blame for gas shortfall: developer
A looming gas shortfall that threatens to curtail industries and derail Australia’s energy transition is the fault of 10 successive government interventions, the Gina Rinehart-backed Senex Energy has declared, and now the country has little time left to fix the mess.
Australia faces a looming gas shortage which could emerge as soon as next winter, and while there are marginal supply boosts that can be implemented, authorities said the chasm would be impossible to bridge by 2028 without urgent new supplies.
Should new supplies not be brought online, large industries that rely on gas are likely to face a battle for survival and Australia’s energy transition away from coal could be scuppered.
Senex Energy, half-owned by mining billionaire Gina Rinehart, said the difficulties were a direct consequence of governments intervening to pick winners – though there is now a gradual acceptance that gas is vital and will be required for decades to come.
Chief executive Ian Davies said Labor and its state counterparts would need to show “unambiguous and unequivocal support” for gas.
“Something needs to change – and quickly – before the warning bells turn to a death knell for industry and lights out for households,” Mr Davies will say in an industry speech in Sydney on Tuesday. “Unrelenting gas market intervention has created this mess and it’s time for effective energy policy to get us out.”
The comments will heighten pressure on Labor, which insists it understands and appreciates the value of the gas while taking steps to bolster domestic supplies.
Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen last week said the shortfall estimates for gas had been delayed by two years, though the gas industry insists the lack of progress in improving the regulatory landscape and exclusion of the sector from key energy security policies is indicative of the government’s support for gas.
Sharpening his attack, Mr Davies said there has been sustained talk but there continued to be little actual progress.
“Following the most recent Energy and Climate Change Ministerial Council Meeting, ministers announced ‘a more robust assessment of gas market conditions and better integration of demand-side opportunities’.
“But no amount of further assessment and analysis is going to fix the problem. What we need are policies that will ensure investment in new supply and result in gas being produced.”
Mr Davies said urgent and real action was needed, the most obvious of which should be speeding up approvals of projects.
Senex submitted an application for environmental approval for its $1bn expansion 500 days ago, Mr Davies will say – which he will label “legislative bureaucracy.”
Senex has struck supply agreements with big gas users, but ongoing delays threaten the timetable.
Labor has committed to streamlining approvals for resource projects but Mr Davies will declare there is no time to waste.
“The longer approvals take, the more profound the shortfall risk becomes – not to mention the risk to manufacturing jobs and the energy transition. And the more expensive the development becomes. To date, approval delays have increased the cost of Senex’s project by more than $150m and counting,” Mr Davies will say. “We remain unwavering in our commitment to the domestic market, but it’s fair to say ongoing approval delays are making it increasingly difficult to deliver the critical gas supply Australian manufacturers and households so desperately need.”
Labor is expected to tweak legislation governing environmental approvals in a bid to accelerate the progress, but Mr Davies will tell the federal Labor government to change the way it consults all stakeholders.
“That means doing more than secret ‘lock-ups’ under punitive non-disclosure agreements with select industry groups and no formal consultation papers or regulatory impact statement,” Mr Davies will say.
“The original (Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation) Act took the best part of a decade to create. It was formed co-operatively with state governments and through extensive public consultation. Fast forward nearly 25 years and the Albanese government wants to replace it with a new Act in less than 18 months with secret and selective micro-consultation.”
Recent government consultation has seen those included required to sign non-disclosure agreements, which blocks participants from discussion of potential legislation changes.
While the onshore gas industry, which services the needs of domestic customers, continues to wait for the legislative amendments the country’s offshore resource sector has secured a win.
Labor on Tuesday moved an amendment that would allow Resources Minister Madeleine King the power to define what hurdles new offshore gas projects must clear before securing approval.
The change is seen as limiting the capacity of environmentalists to mount legal challenges against new LNG projects.
The decision follows a spate of legal victories by environmentalists that have delayed mega projects, including Santos’s $5.3bn Barossa LNG development and Woodside’s $16.5bn Scarborough project.
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Also see my other blogs. Main ones below:
http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM -- daily)
http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)
http://pcwatch.blogspot.com (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH)
http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)
http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)
http://jonjayray.com/blogall.html More blogs
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Evelyn Rae, a conservative Australian political commentator
Margo Robbie -- a beautiful australian
My son Joe at ANU
One of the happiest pictures ever -- Cleo Smith, aged 4
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