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Indications are that the federal government is about accepting a Victorian government to establish an . The plan is to start bringing back 120 international students and event workers per week from May 24. It might seem like a – more than are stranded overseas – but it’s an important start.
Australia benefits from international students returning: not just directly in the , which has had since Australia closed its borders, but also in the from in areas like housing, food and services. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, international education was Australia’s third-largest export industry, worth about to the wider economy.
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If a solution is not found soon, there might be fewer international students to return. Australia risks , like the and the , that are welcoming and assisting international students. The long-term impact on should also be considered.
Many international students have been very tenacious in continuing to study, but they are finding it . They need to believe .
Victoria’s current proposal is less ambitious than some of its . It’s a shame it didn’t take up plans to for quarantine.
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And it’s a real shame it didn’t look at for students from low-risk locations.
The return of students from places like Vietnam or Taiwan poses a to the Australian community. Ideally the system design should reflect this, leaving more quarantine spots available for those who need them.
Even with these faults, Victoria’s proposal is the first plan that would enable an ongoing stream of international students to return. It doesn’t pit international students against returning Australians: it’s an additional program, so it won’t take a single place from those who are trying to get home. It could build confidence to scale up – and give international students some comfort.
Victoria has announced a plan, subject to federal government approval, to enable international students to start returning later this month.
Why the year-long wait for a plan?
With such a strong self-interest case for Australia, the question is why this hasn’t been tried sooner. Pilot programs for South Australia and the ACT were then . New South Wales has called for expressions of interest, but there are . The only pilot that brought back to Charles Darwin University.
So why hasn’t there been more urgency? Some of the explanations apply to all groups who want to return.
The federal government does not want to take responsibility for quarantine. We saw that again the last few days in to Victoria’s plans for cabin-style quarantine on federal land.
The federal government is clearly reluctant to take on more responsibility for quarantine arrangements from the states.
Outbreaks from quarantine hotels have spooked state governments and the public. Victoria, which suffered one of the world’s longest lockdowns, has not been as strong an advocate as might have been expected from a state whose is international education.
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Isolationism ultimately hurts Australia
The lack of urgency in finding solutions to enable travel is hard to explain given the sheer number of people and groups affected, including , international students, workers in the tourism sector and that depends on students and migrants. Cutting itself off from the world .
Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s statement that Australia is in “ ” to reopen was jarring. Perhaps the to making it a crime to return from India might cause the government to reconsider. shows 33% think the federal government has not done enough to help Australians to return.
For international students in particular the problem has been compounded by the federal government’s lack of sympathy – – towards the higher education sector. Some of this is likely to be party politics, but one factor worth considering is the impact of about China in stigmatising international engagement by Australia’s universities.
Australia’s success in international education is now being viewed as . Some see it as a positive that the higher education sector is being forced into . Federal MP Bob Katter went so far as calling universities “prostitutes” who have “ ” to the Chinese Communist Party. Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge has explicitly universities to diversify .
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It will be a tragedy if Australia manages to kill off its third-largest export industry. Rational economic and public health policy would be for Australia to pull out all stops to help international students to return, particularly those from low-risk countries. Any steps in this direction, no matter how small, would be welcome.
Melissa Conley Tyler does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.