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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2020-04-28 Daily Xml
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International Students

The Hon. D.G.E. HOOD (15:09): My question is to the Minister for Trade and Investment. Can the minister update the chamber on the recently announced international student support package and how it has been received by students and educational institutions?

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Minister for Trade and Investment) (15:09): I thank the honourable member for his ongoing interest in this particularly important sector. Just as COVID-19 has had a massive impact on our lives, a number of our international students have found themselves in difficult circumstances and are facing different study experiences and lifestyles in South Australia than they had planned for. In discussions with student leaders, StudyAdelaide and education institutions and the members of MACIE, we know that there are substantial numbers of international students who have lost their part-time employment and some of them have no access to funds from their home country due to the global COVID-19 restrictions.

As contributing members of the South Australian community, our international students have chosen to make Adelaide their home and, regardless of their origin, we have an obligation to support them as we would anyone else at this time. Most of them are ineligible for commonwealth government income support. These students still pay course fees, taxes and consume local services, including accommodation, retail and tourism. Of course, as our largest export industry, any support we can provide to international students will bolster our local industry and save South Australian jobs.

As I indicated in the last sitting week, we were working on a package. Shortly after that, on 21 April, I announced a $13.8 million support package for international students who can demonstrate hardship. This funding is in addition to the student support funds put in place by our universities and covers all international students studying at our universities, our vocational training and English language colleges, as well as students on non-degree courses. Furthermore, South Australian homestay families who take care of our school-aged international students will also qualify for a once-off payment of $200 for assistance per student in consideration of the additional costs that they have to provide during these difficult times.

The uptake of the package has been enormous, with all of our institutions backing the package and over 12,500 students registering through the StudyAdelaide website for information on the application process. This response proves the need for the hardship package. I also acknowledge those members opposite who have shared this government's desire to support international students in this sector. It is something that South Australia should be proud of. We are the first state in the nation, as a first mover, where the government has been able to give support for this sector.

Together with our proactive actions, our international education sector will bolster South Australia's reputation as a premier student destination and greatly enhance our economic recovery efforts post the COVID-19 pandemic. International students are a cherished and valued part of our community and the South Australian government will continue to support and assist our students facing hardship to get through these difficult times so that the sector can come back stronger than before.

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