Universities Australia Chief Executive Officer Luke Sheehy said the Government’s decision to hold its migration settings steady is an important counterpoint to the reckless calls for much deeper cuts.

“We agree with the strong case Minister Burke made today for migration and international education,” Mr Sheehy said.

“Cutting migration too hard comes with consequences for our economy, our universities, our workforce and the services Australians rely on.

“That matters when migration has become a political contest over who can nominate the lowest number. Universities and international students are central to this equation.

“Our sector educates the engineers, nurses, researchers and technology workers Australia needs, while international education supports jobs, communities and one of our biggest export industries.

“Today’s announcement includes exemptions for PhD students and other priority cohorts. This is a welcome measure, reflecting the enormous contribution that these students make to our economy. Australia is competing globally for the researchers and highly skilled people who will drive our future industries, and we need to remain an attractive place for them to study and work.

“That same principle should apply across the international education system.

“The government has decided that 225,000 is the migration level Australia needs and that 295,000 new international student commencements is a sustainable level within that broader approach.

“But international student commencements are already tracking below the planning level – down 8 per cent on last year – while universities are operating with a $2,500 student visa charge, slow visa processing and other barriers making Australia harder to choose.

“If Australia consistently falls short of the 295,000 students the government says it can sustainably accommodate, we also fall short of the skills, workers and economic contribution those students bring.

“You can’t set a sustainable level with one hand and make it harder to get there with the other.

“If 295,000 is the right level for Australia, the settings need to give universities a realistic chance of getting there.

“We also welcome the Minister’s acknowledgement that migration didn’t create Australia’s housing crisis. International students have been blamed too often for problems they didn’t create.

“Today’s announcement recognises that migration has to work for Australia’s economy and skills needs. Now we need the international education settings to do the same.”