Commenting on last week's release of the 2025 Taskforce report, the NZVCC said it contained recommendations that could potentially assist universities in maximising their contribution to closing the income gap with Australia, see media release: http://www.nzvcc.ac.nz/node/456

The taskforce's specific recommendations on tertiary education are:

Government-imposed fee caps on university fees should be abolished Market-based interest rates should be reintroduced for student loans Governance of the public tertiary sector should be reformed, including exploring rationalisation of the non-university sector and the establishment of universities as independent foundations A full review should be undertaken to identify, and recommend reform of, those areas in which various government education agencies (Tertiary Education Commission, Education Review Office, Ministry of Education) have become overly prescriptive, and to explore other, less intrusive, monitoring and accountability options to achieve policy ends that pass a cost-benefit test.

In its commentary, the taskforce report made the following observations on tertiary education:

"On the one hand, we have the totally indefensible policy of providing interest-free (not even inflation-indexed) student loans, including to people of an age where there is no probable public benefit at all to study and little prospect of the loan ever being repaid. Student loans need to be moved back to being provided at, at least, the cost to government of funding the debt. The nominal value of student loans is now around $10 billion, suggesting the policy is costing well in excess of $500 million per annum.

"And on the other hand we have fee caps and subsidy levels that starve universities of resources (including the ability to continue to compete for top-flight staff) and probably encourage too many people to undertake study that has little or no public or private benefit.

"Price controls restrict the supply of a quality product - they encourage providers to produce only what the fee will cover. As a matter of priority, we urge the Government to abolish the fee caps applying to university fees.

"Finally, we suspect there would be considerable gains from substantially reforming the ownership and governance structures of our main tertiary institutions. At present, accountability and incentive structures seem to be flawed, with a resulting substantial overlay of bureaucracy through the Tertiary Education Commission and the Ministry of Education. It is not obvious why the government needs to continue to own and control polytechnics: different models would be likely to lead to consolidation, greater efficiency and improved training outcomes. It may also be worth considering establishing universities as independent foundations - akin to many universities in the US and UK - and at the same time ensuring that other providers, perhaps the better Australian universities, can enter the New Zealand market on the same funding basis as existing providers. We want our young to have access to excellent education here, and should not be greatly concerned who provides it."

Other items

NZVCC to sponsor Higher Education Summit

The NZVCC will sponsor the Higher Education Summit & Expo 2010 to be held at the Crowne Plaza, Auckland, on March 16 and 17. NZVCC deputy chair Derek McCormack will speak on developments in higher education. Other speakers include Massey University Vice-Chancellor the Hon Steve Maharey, University of Auckland Pro-Vice-Chancellor (International) Dr Chris Tremewan, Otago Innovation (University of Otago) CEO Colin Dawson, University of Otago Pro-Vice-Chancellor (International) Professor Sarah Todd, WaikatoLink CEO Mark Stuart, AUT Enterprises CEO Kevin Pryor and Auckland Uniservices Ltd CEO Dr Peter Lee. For more information see: www.activebusinesscommunications.com/education2010

Marsden Fund Council appointments

Victoria University of Wellington Professors James Belich and Timothy Naish have been appointed to the Marsden Fund Council for three-year terms. Massey University's Professor Roger Morris has been reappointed to the council, also for three years. Announcing the appointments, Research, Science and Technology Minister Dr Wayne Mapp said he had every confidence they would provide first-class guidance for the Marsden Fund. Established in 1994, the Royal Society of NZ-administered fund supports fundamental research and currently dispenses $47 million a year.

Professor Belich is Research Professor of History at Victoria's Stout Research Centre. His research focus is New Zealand, Imperial and Commonwealth history. Professor Naish is director of the Antarctic Research Centre and the Joint Antarctic Research Institute at Victoria, and a principal scientist with GNS Science.

Universities Australia speaks out on student income support legislation impasse

The representative body for the Australian university system has spoken out after the Australian Senate failed to pass student income support legislation. Universities Australia called on the Australian Parliament to resolve its differences and do the right thing for all current and prospective Australian university students by supporting the Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Income Support for Students) Bill. The call followed the Australian Senate voting against the legislation late last month, effectively placing it in limbo.

"It is incredibly disappointing that the Parliament has not been able to pass this legislation that is crucial to Australian students for the future," Dr Glenn Withers, Chief Executive of Universities Australia, said in a media release. "We are now faced with the ridiculous possibility of students being denied access to both new and old scholarships due to a political impasse. Negotiation between all the political parties and independents has led to amendments that meet the valid concerns of many Senators, so the package should now be passed. The time for politics on this issue is over, and the needs of our students and their families must be given priority."

Fees increase to improve university quality?

The British Labour government has argued that an increase in tuition fees would improve university quality, according to a report in the Daily Telegraph. British business secretary Lord Mandelson was quoted by the newspaper as saying an increase in fees would encourage universities to improve courses and tailor teaching to individual students. His comments were made as the British government moved to publish a framework laying out its university strategy for the next 15 years, along with a "long-awaited" review of tuition fees. The framework would subject universities to greater scrutiny and ease the way to higher fees.

British higher and further education sectors faced increasingly tight fiscal constraint but according to Lord Mandelson, standards should not fall. Students should be encouraged to be more "picky, choosy and demanding" while government and industry should also scrutinise and monitor courses on behalf of students. "Expanding investment means universities will have to deepen and diversify their sources of non-public income through commercialisation of their teaching or research expertise, through a more professional approach to endowments and through greater resource efficiency." According to the Daily Telegraph report, a consensus was emerging that the fees cap for British universities would be lifted from the current 3225 a year to at least 5000 and possibly as high as 7000 a year - but Lord Mandelson "has made it clear that if fees were to be raised, universities would have to do more for their money".

Commonwealth Scholarships 50th anniversary marked by new destinations

The Association of Commonwealth Universities reports that students from the United Kingdom will soon be able to access Commonwealth Scholarships for a wider range of destinations than ever before, following commitments made to mark this year's 50th anniversary of the scheme.

More than 26,000 students from all Commonwealth countries have held awards since the inception of the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan (CSFP) in 1959. Most have studied in the UK, but the list of countries that host Commonwealth Scholarships has expanded to include a combination of traditional and new higher education destinations. A total of 20 UK citizens have already taken up Commonwealth Post-Doctoral Research Fellowships in Canada, while a further four have been offered postgraduate scholarships in New Zealand this year.

Singapore has recently announced that it will host Commonwealth Scholarships for the first time in 2010, and Trinidad and Tobago will double its offering to eight awards for the anniversary year. Other new destinations are likely to include Botswana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Pacific countries and Sri Lanka. They join more established hosts such as India, Malaysia, South Africa, Brunei Darussalam, Ghana and Jamaica. In addition to commitments from host country governments, a special anniversary endowment fund to support Commonwealth Scholarships in low and middle income countries has already attracted donations of almost 1.7 million.

Royal Society elects new Companion The Council of the Royal Society of New Zealand has elected Professor Vincent Neall from Massey University as a Companion. He has taught earth science at Massey since 1973 and is one of New Zealand's leading experts on volcanoes. The title of Companion is an honour recognising outstanding leadership in science, and contributions to the promotion and advancement of science and technology in New Zealand. RSNZ president Dr Garth Carnaby said the election of Professor Neall as a Companion was formal acknowledgement of the significant role he had played in the regional science centre movement and his many contributions to community education about hazards associated with volcanoes. The award of the Companion of the Royal Society of New Zealand was introduced in 1999 and there are now 29 Companions. PM science prizes nominations Nominations are now open for three of the inaugural Prime Minister's Science Prizes. Five prizes worth a total of $1 million will be awarded annually, with the 2009 winners to be presented with their prizes early in 2010. Each award recipient will receive a trophy and prize money. The prizes are:

Prime Minister's Prize for Science ($100,000 to the winner and $400,000 for their research)

Prime Minister's MacDiarmid Emerging Scientist Prize ($50,000 and $100,000 for their research)

Prime Minister's Science Teacher Prize ($50,000 to the winner and $100,000 to their school)

Prime Minister's Future Scientist Prize ($50,000 to the winner)

Prime Minister's Science Media Communication Prize ($150,000 to cover the costs of a series of secondments for the winner to media organisations). Nominations close on December 18 for three of the prizes - the Prize for Science, the Science Teacher Prize and the Science Media Communication Prize. The 2009 winners of the Prime Minister's Future Scientist Prize and MacDiarmid Emerging Scientist will be based on existing awards, the nominations for which have already closed. To find out more about the Prime Minister's Science Prizes see: www.pmscienceprizes.org.nz