COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA 65/ 079
SPEECH BY
The Rt. Hon. SIR ROBERT MENZIES,
M. P.,
ON THE
SECOND READING
OF THE
UNIVERSITIES ( FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE)
BILL 1965
[ Front the " Parliamentary Debates," 18th May 1965]
Sir ROBERT MENZIES ( Kooyong-
Prime Minister) [ 8.11-I move-
That the Bill be now read a second time.
In October 1963, the Parliament passed an
act to provide finance for universities in thc
various States during the calendar years
1965 and 1966. In November 1964,
* Parliament amended that act to make
some additional provision for higher
academic salaries in State universities during
1964. The present Bill is for the purpose
A~ a mending the previous legislation in order
1 make more Commonwealth funds availate
in respect of the three years 1964, 1965
and 1966. More finance is necessary to
increase the capital grants to universities folfollowing
the Government's acceptance of
the recommendations in the Tertiary Education
Committee report, and to provide for
increases in recurrent costs resulting from
acceptance of the increases in academic
salaries which were recommended last year
in the Eggleston report. Funds are also
required to give effect to the Government's
583 1/ 65 decision to support an increase in fees paid
to part-time academic staff, and to provide
further amounts for research in State
universities. As recommended by the Tertiary Education
Committee, the Commonwealth will
meet half the cost of certain additional
capital works to be undertaken during the
next 18 months at the following universities
-Macquarie, La Trobe, Bedford Park,
Newcastle, Townsville University Collegeand
for a start on a second university institution
in the Brisbane area. The total value of
these works is œ 2,450,000 of which the
Commonwealth will pay 1,225,000. The Bill
makes provision for the Commonwealth
contribution. Honorable members will recall
that in November 1964, following consideration
by the Parliament of the
Eggleston report, an amendment was made
to the Universities ( Financial Assistance)
Act 1963 to permit payment of the estimated
cost of increased academic salaries during
1964. We have since obtained from the
Australian Universities Commission precise
figures for each State university for each
of the years 1964, 1965 and 1966, and the
present Bill revises the interim grants for
1964 and increases the grants for
1965 and 1966.
The Government has now decided to support
higher fees for part-time academic staff
commencing from 1st July 1965. The Commonwealth
is prepared to join with any
State in providing funds to support a maximum
fee of œ 6 per hour for part-time lecturers,
together with appropriate rates for
other part-time academic staff. Where a
State decides on a lower fee, that will be
the limit to our support. This decision is
in accord with the advice of the Universities
Commission and the revised First Schedule
to the Act incorporates the higher rates for
both full-time and part-time academic staff.
In October 1963, the Parliament also provided
œ 500,000 as the Commonwealth's half
share of funds to be specially set aside for
research in State universities. This money
was used during 1964 for post-graduate
research activities, which are closely bound
up with post-graduate training. The Government
is now proposing that a like amount
be provided for the same purposes during
each of the years 1965 and 1966. The total
cost to the Commonwealth over the three
years will be œ 1.5 million, and the distribution
among the State universities will be as
the Universities Commission has recommended.
The final provision in this Bill to which
I wish to refer is the recognition of the
Univcrsity of Newcastle in its own right. It will be remembered that in response to a
request from the Government of New South
Wales, the Government has agreed to
recognise the independence of Newcastle
from 1st January 1965. The Bill does this
by making provision in the schedules for
the University of Newcastle to the extent
contemplated when that institution was part
of the University of New South Wales, and
the sums set aside for the University of New
South Wales have been adjusted accordingly.
The amendments now before the House
require Commonwealth grants for State universities
of œ 6,947,000 above those
originally made for the years 1964, 1965
and 1966. The total Commonwealth contribution
to State universities over those
three years will now be about œ 64 milli
In conclusion I point out to the H1
that we arc not proposing any funds in this
Bill in support of teaching costs in medical
hospitals. I shall explain why that is so. A
report from the Universities ComMissi
was presented to the Government a few d m
ago, but there has been no opporit 0
take decisions and carry them forward into
this Bill. Nevertheless, I assure the House
that the Government will deal with this
matter promptly, and I know that the
House will agree that when we are ready
to announce our decisions we should do so
for the benefit of all concerned, without
waiting for resumption of the Parliament.
Honorable members will see what I mean
by that. Normally, one would wait until the
House was sitting, but as there will be an
interval, the sooner these decisions are q
known, the better. I commend the Bill to M
House.
BlY AUTHORITY: A. J. ARTHUR, COMMONWEALTH GOVERNMENT PRINTER, CANBERRA.