This year more regional students should qualify for independent youth allowance. This could only have happened through the persistent lobbying and determination by students, their parents, education stakeholders and the Coalition for the abolition of the unfair 30 hour work rule that the Labor government introduced in 2010. Consequently, thousands of students from inner regional areas struggled to qualify for the allowance.
Students had their day of victory last September when the government did a backflip and changed the criteria back to what it was originally.
Interestingly the government is now enthusiastically spruiking the latest changes that came into effect on January 1 this year.
Its enthusiasm for such change would have been welcome months ago when students and their families were at their wits’ end as to how they were going to afford a tertiary education.
If anyone deserves credit for the fairer deal on independent youth allowance, it is the students who never gave up, not the government.
Senator Fiona Nash
Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Education
The Nationals Senator for NSW
Deputy Leader of the Nationals in the Senate
