Anthony Albanese‘s government will cut 20 per cent off all student loan debts, wiping around $16billion in student debt for around three million Australians.
The policy – central to Mr Albanese’s re-election campaign – is now set to be implemented following his election victory as of June this year.
Under the plan, a graduate with an average student debt of $27,600 will see their loan reduced by $5,520, according to government figures.
Mr Albanese’s proposed reform would apply to all Higher Education Loan Program, Vet Student Loans, Australian Apprenticeship Support Loans and other income-contingent student loans.
‘Our whole nation benefits when we make it easier for people to access education. This is about opening the doors of opportunity – and widening them,’ he previously said when announcing the plan.
The reforms would also raise the threshold for repayment from $54,000 to $67,000 and lower the rate to be repaid.
For someone on an income of $70,000, this will mean they will pay around $1,300 less per year in repayments.
This builds on a $3billion policy introduced last year, which links student debt indexation to the lower of the wage price index or the consumer price index.
Anthony Albanese’s government will reduce student loan debt by 20 per cent
How much your student debt will be wiped by is revealed in the table above
Without it, graduates could have faced another steep increase, like in 2023, when indexation soared to 7.1 per cent – up from 3.9 per cent the year before – adding $1,759 to the average student debt of $24,770.
Mr Dutton had vowed to scrap Labor’s student debt relief if the Coalition had won Saturday’s election, arguing its unfair on tradies who didn’t go to university.
Increasing its majority in parliament with a resounding victory, Labor has gained a second term in office with large swings across marginal electorates and in former Liberal heartland seats.
With 71 per cent of the vote counted, Labor has won 85 seats with the Coalition going backwards to sit on 37 seats, while 18 seats remain in doubt.
Among the significant wins for Labor was Mr Dutton’s electorate of Dickson, as he became the first opposition leader to lose his seat at an election.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said Mr Albanese will go down in history as a Labor hero following the result.
‘This was beyond even our most optimistic expectations,’ he told ABC’s Insiders program on Sunday.
‘It was a history-making night, it was one for the ages.
‘This victory does come as well with healthy helpings of humility, because we know that there are a lot of challenges to address in our economy.’
With expanded numbers in the House of Representatives, Mr Chalmers said Labor was able to implement its ‘ambitious’ agenda.
‘One of the reasons why we got this big majority last night is because people recognise that if you wanted stability while the global economy was going crazy, then a majority Labor government was the best way to deliver that,’ he said.
The Coalition crashed to its lowest-ever primary vote and could record a historic low number of seats, resulting in party soul-searching as the Liberals begin the process of electing a new leader.
