Coronavirus: Hardship fund ‘key for foreign students’

Australia’s international education sector is ramping up demands for a hardship fund to help stranded ­foreign students.

Education Minister Dan Tehan in Canberra on Sunday. Picture: AAP

Australia’s international education sector is ramping up demands for a hardship fund to help stranded ­foreign students, as it all but gives up hope for more support from Scott Morrison.

Calls for a hardship fund came as Education Minister Dan Tehan ruled out on Monday expanding his $18bn ­tertiary relief package to inter­national students, saying it was designed to help Australians who have had “their lives turned upside down”.

The proposed scheme would see foreign students’ fees and living ­requirements largely supported by donations from philanthropists, with the fund established through a one-off “substantial payment” from the commonwealth.

The Australian understands international education leaders have now abandoned the campaign — led by Labor, the Greens and the trade unions — to expand welfare support for foreign students after conversations with the Morrison government, and a hardship fund is now considered the last available compromise.

English Australia chief executive Brett Blacker — who represents the nation’s English-language schools — said the focus for the sector and Labor should now be on the hardship fund, which he argued would help more international students than JobKeeper and JobSeeker.

“Opening up those welfare payments would be ideal, but the ­reality is it’s very unlikely … we ­believe this is the main vehicle to push, it’s the last effort,” he said.

“Many international students wouldn’t meet the criteria for JobKeeper due to the 12-month casual rule anyway. The fund would provide help for all of our students … many of them can’t pay their fees, can’t pay their rents.”

International Education Association of Australia chief executive Phil Honeywood said a hardship fund backed by the federal government, state authorities and philanthropists would help students and protect Australia’s international education reputation.

“We have had the British and New Zealand governments ­recently announce meaningful ­humanitarian aid to their inter­national students,” he said. “At the very least, Australia will have to put together a national hardship fund in the near future. Otherwise, our reputation as a welcoming study destination could be compromised.

“It would involve a substantial one-off funding allocation from the federal government administered by state and territory governments, and allow for donations and funding support from education providers, all levels of government and philanthropic organisations.”

The government’s relief package will slash the price of shorter university courses and diplomas in an effort to retrain the nation’s newly unemployed for work in a post-pandemic era.

Government sources said they had no interest in expanding support for the universities through JobKeeper or other means, believing many higher education institutions had the financial resources to see them through the pandemic.

The university sector has argued that the $18m cut-price courses offer and a $100m regulatory relief package will still result in massive downturns in revenue and the loss of 21,000 full-time jobs.