Albanese Reveals Student Debt Relief After Election Win
- admin928749
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed that the very first thing his government will do after being re-elected is slash student debt by another 20 per cent. He made the announcement at a Labor caucus meeting in Canberra, saying young Aussies deserve a “fair crack” and that this move is about making sure the next generation feels supported and secure.
“The first piece of legislation we’ll introduce in the new parliament is one for the 20 per cent reduction in student debt,” he said to a round of applause.He added that this isn’t just about numbers — it’s about intergenerational fairness.
Reflecting on his own experience, Albanese joked that he finished the HSC on a Tuesday and was working at Commonwealth Bank by Monday — something that’s definitely not as easy to pull off these days.“Jobs and education have changed so much. It’s gotten harder in so many ways,” he said, pointing out that young people today face a faster, more uncertain world of work — and the government wants to ease that burden.
So, what’s actually changing?
From July 1, student loan debts (HELP, VET, apprenticeships, etc.) will be cut by 20%
The minimum repayment threshold will rise from about $54,000 to $67,000
That’s around $16 billion wiped from loan accounts across Australia
The average student will see about $5,520 erased from their HECS balance
Those who already repaid their debt after the big indexation spikes in 2023 or 2024? You’ll get a refund, as long as you don’t owe anything else to the government
This move builds on an earlier rollout that started back in December 2024, when $3 billion in debt was already wiped. That first wave came after the government capped indexation so that it could no longer rise faster than wages — a big win for students who saw their debts balloon just from inflation.
Education Minister Jason Clare called this new round “the next step”, bringing the total student debt wiped to nearly $20 billion.
“This is a game-changer for more than three million Australians,” he said.
Assistant Minister for Education Anthony Chisholm added, “We said we’d create a better and fairer education system — and we’re delivering.”
Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.
Comentários