STATEMENTS BY SENATORS

Senator ANANDA-RAJAH (Victoria) (13:32): The cost of living is a priority for the Albanese government. We understand that Aussie households are under sustained cost-of-living pressure. That's why we brought in tax cuts.

That's why we brought in a lift to the minimum wage, a lift in bulk-billing and payday super, and cheaper meds. But there is another way to uplift your finances, and that is in getting an in-demand skill—a skill that this nation needs. Now, research from Jobs and Skills Australia released last year showed that young people who completed vocational education had a significant uplift in their finances.

In fact, their median income rose by $14,000. This was seen for apprentices who completed and people who partially completed. So vocational education is a gateway to a secure, well-paid job.

It is a means to uplift your finances significantly. We've also found that course completers get a job. For apprentices the rate is 95 per cent, and for those acquiring skills in the care economy the rate is 90 per cent.

These are young people who are taking up skills and walking into secure, well-paid jobs that are needed in this country. In addition, we also found that almost one in two graduates who were on welfare came off it. It's another indication that TAFE delivers economic and financial independence to Australians.

We have made free TAFE now a permanent fixture of our education and training program, and this is in contrast to the coalition, who simply gutted TAFE, walked away from it, thought it was just middle-class welfare or a waste of time. We're seeing TAFE enrolments increase to 800,000 now, and people are completing them. A third of Australians who are taking this up are from regional Australia.

This is a story of regional Australia.