Australia’s universities have urged political and industry leaders to put skills and research at the centre of the national reform agenda, warning that productivity cannot recover without a stronger tertiary sector.
In a submission to this week’s Economic Reform Roundtable, Universities Australia Chief Executive Luke Sheehy said the country faces no time to waste. “We don’t have any time to waste in getting productivity humming again,” he said. “It’s the key to a bigger, better and brighter future for all Australians, which is why we need to be doing everything we can as universities, employers, unions and governments to lift the handbrake.”
Mr Sheehy argued that universities are central to the task. “Universities are a big part of the solution—we need that to be recognised and embraced this week,” he said. “You can’t make the economy more productive or prosperous without skilled workers and innovation, both of which are our bread and butter.”
The submission highlights how universities produce a steady pipeline of graduates while also driving innovation through research. “Every day, Australia’s universities are doing their bit, producing a pipeline of skilled workers and driving innovation through research to make Australia stronger, more successful and more resilient,” Mr Sheehy said. “And the reality is that Australia needs more skills and more research if we’re going to overcome our current economic malaise.”
He added that universities must be placed “on the front line of the productivity challenge” if Australia is to achieve a more prosperous future. “If we want a more prosperous, productive nation, we need to unleash the full potential of our people and ideas and that means putting our universities on the front line of the productivity challenge.”
The Universities Australia submission calls on the government to remove what it describes as perverse incentives in the Job-ready Graduates Package, which it says distorts enrolment patterns and limits workforce planning. It proposes replacing the scheme with a funding model that better reflects national skills needs.
Other recommendations include extending the Higher Education Loan Program to cover microcredentials to support lifelong learning, boosting national research and development collaboration to help small and medium enterprises innovate, and reforming red tape to free up resources for teaching and discovery.
Mr Sheehy also acknowledged the role of ministers leading the discussions. “We thank Ministers Clare, Giles and Ayres for leading focused discussions on education, skills and R&D, and we look forward to continuing to work with the government to drive productivity.”
The call from the university sector comes as Australia records its slowest productivity growth in six decades. Universities argue that any long-term fix to the economy depends on ensuring the workforce is equipped with advanced skills and that research-led innovation is embedded into industry.
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