Innovative Research Universities latest to criticise government cuts

The Innovative Research Universities group has added its voice to protests over government cuts to higher education, saying that taking the money to pay for schools is “particularly galling”.

The group says it is “difficult to understand” why the government is reducing the amount of money universities receive per student, against recommendations made in two funding reviews, on the grounds that the Gonski review of schools called for a more appropriate level of funding per school student.

“The importance of a good school education system to subsequent tertiary education is clear but there is no sense to cutting back on policies that increase higher education take-up in order to buttress school resourcing,” said the IRU in a statement. “This is particularly so [given that] the government has increased school funding since 2007 where additional money essentially supports a static school population.”