The government is legislating to allow aviation students to borrow more and teachers in remote schools to pay nothing 

A Bill before parliament will allow students in flying courses access to the same HECS HELP borrowing as medicine, dentistry and veterinary science, $152 000 this year. Access to the higher cap for people studying to be commercial pilots is said to be necessary to cover training courses and Civil Aviation Safety Authority ratings.

But people who teach for four years in a very remote location will have the HELP debt wiped on their first teaching qualification. John Halsey (Flinders U), author of the government’s January 2018 review of regional, rural and remote education, backed the move yesterday, “it is very encouraging to see the Australian Government continuing to focus on the complex challenge of attracting and retaining teachers in very remote schools and communities.”