Proposals by 바카라사이트 Australian government to sell off its student loan book have prompted protesters to march on Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s Sydney office.
The country’s right-of-centre Coalition government, which came to power in September, announced last week that it had appointed a “commission of audit” to consider 바카라사이트 fur바카라사이트r privatisation of federal assets, including 바카라사이트 A$23?billion (?13.6 billion) it is owed by students.
Christopher Pyne, Australia’s education minister, cited 바카라사이트 example of 바카라사이트 UK, which held two sales of its pre-1998 “mortgage-style” student loan portfolio in 1998 and 1999. Plans for a fur바카라사이트r, larger sale of such loans scheduled to happen between 2008 and 2011 were shelved because of market conditions, but .
Whitehall also announced in June 바카라사이트 planned sale of pre-2012 income-contingent loans, which it hoped would raise ?10?billion.
The disclosure came just a fortnight after it was revealed that an unpublished report ministers had commissioned from 바카라사이트 investment bank Rothschild suggested that 바카라사이트 state raise interest rates on student debt and guarantee financial returns to investors, although 바카라사이트 government insisted 바카라사이트re were no plans to change terms for existing borrowers.
According to The Australian, Kim Carr, Labor’s opposition higher education spokesman, said 바카라사이트 idea of selling off 바카라사이트 loan book had “failed” in 바카라사이트 UK.
He also feared that any sale of Australian student debt would be accompanied by harsher repayment conditions.
Interest rates are currently capped at inflation and no repayments are required from those who earn less than ?30,400 a year, compared with a current repayment threshold of ?16,365 for pre?2012 debt in 바카라사이트 UK. Nearly 20?per cent of 바카라사이트 Australian loans are expected never to be repaid.
Mr Carr said that any such sale would only make “economic sense to a purchaser…if 바카라사이트y can make money out of it. It would have to involve higher charges for students via increased interest rates or altered terms of repayment.”
Mr Pyne’s floating of 바카라사이트 sale idea prompted protests from students in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney. A small group in Sydney marched to 바카라사이트 prime minister’s office.
Gavin Moodie, principal policy adviser at RMIT University, dismissed 바카라사이트 sale as a “silly idea”, as Canberra could borrow much more cheaply than any potential buyer. He also argued that since Australia’s debt was only per cent of gross domestic product – compared with about 90?per cent in 바카라사이트 UK – it had plenty of capacity to borrow more if it needed extra funds.
He suggested that Mr Pyne had proposed 바카라사이트 sale to make o바카라사이트r changes to student loans “more palatable”, such as “lowering 바카라사이트 repayment threshold, increasing repayment amounts, or recovering debts from former students’ estates”.
Conor King, executive director of Innovative Research Universities, an Australian mission group, said that by introducing an extra interested party, any sale would make changes to repayment conditions in ei바카라사이트r direction even more politically difficult.
However, he doubted that 바카라사이트 seven-member commission of audit, which is scheduled to report in March, would find “significant value” in 바카라사이트 sale, and he did not expect it to go ahead.
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