Universities Accord (Opening the Doors of Opportunity) Bill 2026
Senator FARUQI (New South Wales—Deputy Leader of the Australian Greens) (10:28): I now move Greens amendment (1) on sheet 4120: (1) Schedule 2, item 15, page 56 (line 27), omit "a course", substitute "courses". This amendment removes the ability for the minister to specify kinds of courses and providers for international student allocation. In another interventionist attack, the bill sought to give the minister the ability to allocate international students to specific individual providers and specific courses.
This is an entirely unacceptable intrusion into the autonomy of universities and yet another attack on international students by the Albanese government. The Albanese government has tried again and again to use education policy as migration policy and has failed again and again. But they do not give up their attempts.
It's not enough for them to dog whistle on international students and really dehumanise international students; they keep trying to use education policy to crack down on them as well. Migration policy does not belong in an education bill. International students are not cash cows and, now, scapegoats.
They really aren't. You need to have some more respect—respect for the students who come here and contribute so much to society. It is absolutely shameful that the three parties—Labor, Liberal and One Nation—are now using international students over and over as scapegoats, blaming them for every war.
That is their fault, because they haven't addressed the housing crisis. They haven't addressed the cost-of-living crisis. It is absolutely shameful that the tens of thousands of students who choose Australia for study are being treated so poorly and so badly.
They will stop coming. You will ruin the international education reputation that Australia used to have. Your cruelty to international students knows no bounds.
We have made this change, at least in this education bill, and we will not stop there. We will not stop there, because the Greens will not allow you to keep treating international students the way that you are.