The following article was published in "The Guardian", newspaper of the
Communist Party of Australia in its issue of Wednesday, December 3rd, 2003.
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Health & education: Keep them public
Despite widespread opposition to its Medicare and Higher Education
Bills, the Howard Government has tried bullying, lying, and threatening
universities - every dirty trick in the book - to ram through its
unpopular, regressive, anti-people program. It tells whopping lies about
being committed to Medicare as it attempts to buy the votes of a few
wavering Democrats or independents who hold the balance of power in the
Senate.
by Anna Pha
Both Bills have a number of features in common. They have the aim of
taking the public health system and public universities further down the
track towards privatisation.
Bulk billing and free education are being replaced by user-pays. There
is a front door for the wealthy to buy their way into a private hospital
or public university and a back door with a long queue for the rest. As
a result, universal access is being replaced by access according to
ability to pay.
In addition to user-pays there is greater reliance on corporate funding
and private provision of health and higher education as they are treated
as commodities to be bought and sold on a deregulated market place.
In line with other areas, the Government is gradually winding back its
responsibility for the funding and provision of these essential services.
Education package
Teaching and non-teaching staff and students united in national action,
closing universities across Australia on October 16. They opposed the
Government's plans to allow universities to increase fees by up to 30
per cent and open up more full-fee paying places; its attempts to force
universities to employ staff on individual contracts; and other measures
to interfere in university governance at the same time as further
deregulating the education "market".
Failing to gain the support of Labor, Greens, the Democrats or the four
independent Senators, Education Minister Brendan Nelson recently
proposed some amendments to the package which did not alter its major
thrust. These were not accepted.
Then on Friday last week, he returned with the offer of a few crumbs for
Indigenous students, students with disabilities, poor students from
rural backgrounds and disadvantaged students and other relatively minor
changes relating to the repayment of HECS debt.
But the key issues such as increasing fees, increasing the number of
full-fee paying students and making new funding conditional on the
imposition of individual workplace contracts, remain.
The four independents voted for the Bill on Monday, but attached a
number of important conditions to be met before they would agree to
support its expected return to the Senate on Tuesday this week.
Medicare package
At this stage the Medicare legislation has been sent to the Medicare
Select Committee (for a second time), in effect delaying further
consideration of the Bill until next year.
The Committee has been charged with inquiring into the Government's
"Medicare Plus" package, including the pathetic $5 incentive to doctors
when they bulk-bill children and concession card holders and the
recruitment of overseas doctors. The Committee is to report back by
February 11, 2004.
Health Minister Tony Abbott is still determined to get the package
through before the end of the year and is pushing the Senate to reverse
its decision.
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