Page MP Janelle Saffin says if the National Party was serious about supporting rural students, its members wouldn’t be blocking Government legislation to increase access to the Youth Allowance.

“I am regularly contacted by students and parents desperate to know when the legislation will be passed, because they need their new allowances as the academic year begins. I have encouraged them to contact the National and Liberal Party Senators.

“The Coalition is blocking the legislation because it wants to keep an old scheme where a student with parents earning only $40,000 missed out on the full allowance, while a student with parents earning $300,000 could get full allowance through a loophole in the gap year provision
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“Nationals Senator Fiona Nash has admitted there was rorting of the old system.

“What the Nationals and Liberals are really about is supporting a privileged few, not about fair and equitable access to education.

“They did nothing to address the decline in student participation from rural and regional areas over the last five years of the Coalition Government and now through their actions in the Senate they are denying new scholarships and increased funding to thousands of students in rural and regional areas.

“The Rudd Government’s legislation has the support of every university in Australia, every State and Territory Education Minister, the National Union of Students, the Postgraduate Student Association, the Australian Greens and every Independent Member of Parliament except Senator Fielding.

“The Vice Chancellors of every university in Australia have written to every Senator this week urging them to pass the bill because ‘…it properly targets less well-off students across Australia for whom income support is critical.’

Ms Saffin said while the bill is blocked, students are missing out on thousands of dollars in support.

“Many students from regional areas who move away from home to study would be eligible for relocation scholarships of $4000 in the first year and $1000 a year after that, as well as an annual start-up scholarship of $2254 when the scheme is fully up and running.

“How can the National Party Senators block a bill that will so clearly benefit thousands of young people from rural and regional Australia? A bill that has such widespread support from the experts? It is time for them to listen to the education sector and students who want the Bill passed and the scholarships paid,” Ms Saffin said.

Details of the new Youth Allowance are available online at www.deewr.gov.au/youthallowance