Auckland students' total debt is set to double under the Labour/Alliance government, said ACT leader Richard Richard
Prebble who is visiting Auckland University today.
"Judith Tizard boats that Auckland students have saved more than$14 million in interest charges off their student loans
due to the government's no interest while studying policy. But the $14 million will be more than wiped out by the fact
that students must pay interest on a much larger debt after they graduate.
"So the interest bill for graduates, far from having decreased, will have doubled under this government.
"The problem has never been getting a student loan. If anything, loans have always been too easy to get. The problem is
repaying the debt after graduation. That's got worse and Judith Tizard has no ideas on how to assist graduates in
repaying their debt.
"This government is just irresponsibly encouraging students to get further into debt.
"ACT favours tax relief to help students repay their debt - and the best form of tax relief is lower taxes," Mr Prebble
said.
ENDS