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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 04 Hansard (Thursday, 1 April 2004) . . Page.. 1525 ..

available. Support should be available for all those different options. It would be of value if the ACT government established whether the costs of vocational education courses presented a barrier to prospective vocational education students.

I referred earlier to the fact that, under these new and structured apprenticeships, students have to pay an upfront study fee of $250. However, other vocational education courses could cost substantially more. The upfront fee for a CIT semester of study is as high as $680. Additional costs are also incurred for materials and excursions, and there are all the other associated costs with being a student. Some young people are choosing not to enrol because they just cannot afford to pay those upfront fees. They are missing out on training opportunities that are being offered.

I understand that a 50 per cent concession is available to all CIT students on full Centrelink benefits who are paying fees. However, it still means that they might have to find close to $400 just to commence their apprenticeships. It is not easy for anyone to find that sort of money. Only a limited number of loans are available to cover these costs. Targeted fee waivers or delayed fees might give more disadvantaged young people access to apprenticeships, thus breaking the cycle.

Young people want to undergo training and improve their skills so that they are more employable. However, they need money in order to be able to do so. Often they can only get money as a result of having a job, so they get stuck in the unemployment cycle. They cannot improve their training opportunities or their skills because they do not have the job that they need to earn the money that will enable them to do that. We must find a way to break that cycle and to reduce our youth unemployment. There are broader policy implications in this area.

It is vital to the long-term health of the ACT economy that we increase the number of young people being trained in the trades and the professions. As I noted earlier, even the economic white paper picked up on that important point. Canberra restaurants are struggling to find qualified chefs so that they can open up their businesses and provide services. Skills shortages in other industries will prevent new businesses being established in the future. Those skills shortages might also lead to a decline of lifestyle in the territory and to the closure of businesses.

We might be keeping up in some areas but we are not keeping up in others. Many people referred to the bricklayer shortage and to the fact that not enough new people are being employed in those manual trades. Many people who are permanently on the unemployment queue could benefit from those sorts of jobs. However, they just do not have the training. They need support to obtain an apprenticeship or a traineeship so that they are able to do undertake that work.

If the Canberra economy is to keep growing and diversifying and we are to meet our labour needs we must continue to train people. We must establish where those skills shortages are and we must help industries to take on board more trainees. We must also establish what role the government should play in supporting businesses that employ trainees and apprentices. I acknowledge the work that the government already does in supporting vocational education programs in schools.

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