Students may need loans to study

Press, 17 January 1989, Page 5

Students may need loans to study

PA Wellington The Government is considering making tertiary students take out bank loans to help pay for their studies rather than the student tax recommended in the Hawke report. The Associate Minister of Education, Mr Goff, said the proposal would mean more money upfront for the Government to spend straight away on education. The Hawke committee on post-compul-sory education and training last September recommended that students repay 20 per cent of their course costs through the tax system once they were earning the average wage. Mr Goff said the Government had not yet decided whether it would adopt the recommendation, but it was exploring

the option of Government guaranteed bank loans with a Government subsidy of interest costs. A commercial loans system would make the money available immediately rather than several years later, as would be the case under the Hawke system, when student repayments of Government loans began to “trickle in.” “I would be available in year one and it would mean we would be increasing by literally thousands the number of places that were available for people to study at tertiary level.” He expected a decision on student contribution and the method of payment by early February.