The bill to reduce the base incomes for university student loan repayments to $45 000 is still stuck in the Senate, where the government is generally assumed to have the numbers. The debate to date there has not added anything much to arguments pro and con already out there but senators did use the opportunity to provide wide-ranging (rambling is such an unkind word) commentaries on higher education.

Cory Bernardi (Aus Con- SA) had an idea that might appeal to the government as it works on the plan to allocate undergraduate growth places by performance, a report on the time it takes for graduates in specific disciplines to get a job, by university.

“It would produce some accountability. It would mean that universities don’t just pick the cheapest degree to provide—let’s say it’s a law degree, for argument’s sake—and graduate hundreds of students who all expect a glittering legal career and are unable to find work in that sector.”

CMM does not know whether Minister Birmingham was in the chamber but law school lobbies best start preparing briefs explaining why this is a bad idea in case he was listening.