Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ) has endorsed the Federal Budget's university and TAFE investments after sustained calls for major reform of the higher education sector.
CA ANZ was pleased to see an additional $2.5 billion over 11 years for a new higher education funding system which will provide more Commonwealth Supported Places and extra support for disadvantaged students.
But it flagged that this new funding system must not impose hard caps on university enrolments. Instead, it should extend these Commonwealth Supported Places to all Australian higher education providers to expand student choices.
CA ANZ Education, Skills and Migration Policy Leader Sarah Davidson welcomed the 20 per cent cut to student debts, wiping $16 billion from outstanding student loans.
"We have called for a reduction to student debt for many years now," Ms Davidson said.
"The accounting profession has experienced declining university degree enrolments for most of the past decade, leaving a critical shortfall of accounting, audit and finance professionals that we desperately need in Australia.
"This decline in enrolments is concerning as demand for the accounting profession has never been higher, with Government employment projections prepared by Victoria University forecasting the number of accounting roles will increase from 201,600 in 2024 to 234,000 by 2034."
Ms Davidson said the Budget was missing a number of measures to further support the accounting profession, including lowering the cost of accounting degrees, which is a key source of student debt, and including accounting subjects at school.
"As we head towards an election, we would like to see more visionary policies from the Government that support the accounting profession," Ms Davidson said.
"CA ANZ would also like more schools supported to offer accounting subjects, and a robust national accounting curriculum for senior secondary students.
"We are also calling for more support for international students and graduates who have the qualifications to do complex accounting work but are forced to do work below their skill level due to archaic migration rules and a lack of support to prepare them for the workplace.
"As accountants play a critically important role in the functioning and sustainability of global financial markets, a strong pipeline of talent for the profession is key to ensuring economic stability.
"We look forward to working with the Federal Government on the rollout of this Budget to ensure we are fully addressing the key issues facing the accounting profession."
