We had free Uni from Whitlam until the late 80s when Hawke/Keating were compelled to introduce HECS due to costs to the general taxpayer.
If University education was available to all , then I'd agree that it should be free as is primary & secondary education. The true is, however, that only about 30% of our youth qualify for admission; hence HECS
Given that higher education is generally contributes to class distinctions and our growing wealth gap between the poor and the middle class, IMO, the current HECS system is fair . By the way, free tertiary education was introduced by Whitlam in the early 1970s and diluted by Hawke/Keating in the late 1980s with the introduction of HECs (interest free Uni loans) because we simply could not afford it and that it was unfair to ask those taxpayers who could not/did not qualify academically to be admitted to Uni.
IMO if there is to be free Uni in future , then there will have to be a social contract so that the beneficiaries pay back to society in other ways other than via the current tax system that is subject rorting. Even with HECS there can be rorting with new graduates going over seas for a year or two to avoid repayment.
If a graduate earns less than $51K P/A, then they dont have to pay back their HECS
"You're required to start paying back your debt(HECS) once you earn above a certain amount. (For this year, it's $51,957 before tax.) The more you earn, the more you're required to pay back." (source: MyGov)
So when your bright eyed/bushy tailed waiter/waitress tells you that I graduated last year & I'm waiting on my civil service application results, you can rest assured that they are not paying back their HECS.
