I don' t believe Universities need a further leg up. They can afford to pay Chancellors and VCs $1mill plus super all around the country and are doing very well in real estate transfer deals as well as gouging students.... particularly the foreign invitees.
As far as who started the FUp it is immaterial and moot.
Now is now. Yes tradies would be sourced from the mainland with considerable numbers of 'visa workers' shifting one shortage to another. The core problem is the rate if immigration IMO.