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In Budget 2012 the Government will be focused on rebalancing our overall spend in tertiary education between expenditure on student support and investment in tuition and research.

We have one of the most generous student support systems in the world.  Rebalancing it a little will free up some money that we reinvest in the quality of tertiary education we provide, and help our overall fiscal position.

The Household Labour Force Survey released today underlines the gradual, steady growth in the number of jobs, Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce says.

The HLFS for March 2012 shows an increase in the number of people employed with 9000 new jobs in the quarter, the highest labour force participation rate in three years, but also the unemployment rate lifting from 6.4 per cent to 6.7 per cent.

Salam alaykum

Tena koutou katoa

Greetings to you all

First, can I say what an absolute privilege it is to be asked to provide the concluding remarks to this wonderful event: the International Exhibition & Conference on Higher Education.

I come from a small country from the other end of the world. New Zealand is a good 17 or 18 hours flight from Riyadh but it is a testament to how truly international that international education is today that every year 7000 Saudi students study in my country.

Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce will today travel to the Gulf states of Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia to raise New Zealand’s profile as a destination for international students and to support education companies seeking to grow their business in the region.

“Since 2008 students from the Gulf States studying in New Zealand have grown by 33.4 per cent and are now approaching 7500. This makes the Gulf States our fifth largest source of international students,” Mr Joyce says.

The Government is boosting its support for the Christchurch international education sector with a dedicated $5 million fund that will promote the city overseas as an education destination over the next four years, Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Steven Joyce announced today.

“Christchurch is normally our second largest destination for international students and the city has an international reputation for very high-quality education,” Mr Joyce says.

Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce has announced today that there will be no increase to the student allowance parental income threshold this year.

Student allowance rates and student loans living costs will be increased by 1.77 percent on 1 April 2012 as part of the 2012 Annual General Adjustment.

“Freezing the threshold at current levels is the first step in curbing the major expenditure increase in student allowances over the last few years as we look to better target this support to students who need it most,” Mr Joyce says.

Christchurch’s earthquakes have had a big impact on the number of international students studying in the city with a 37% drop in 2011, latest figures from the Education Ministry show.

Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Steven Joyce says the results were not unexpected.

“The earthquakes in Canterbury have severely impacted the number of people from overseas wishing to study in Christchurch,” Mr Joyce says.

Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Steven Joyce today announced three new appointments to the councils of the University of Auckland and Victoria University.

The new appointees are former Fonterra Chief Executive Andrew Ferrier to the University of Auckland Council, and lawyer Victoria Heine and accountant John Selby to the Victoria University of Wellington Council.

A total of 9616 training places will be available in 2012 for 16 and 17 year olds under the Government's Youth Guarantee Scheme, Tertiary Education, Skills & Employment Minister Steven Joyce and Education Minister Hekia Parata announced today.

The Government is investing more than $100 million in the Youth Guarantee Scheme in 2012, which encompasses fees-free tertiary places at levels 1-3 for 16 and 17 year olds, and Trades Academies.

The Government is providing $6 million to support Pacific peoples enter into trades training in 2012 and 2013 to assist with the Christchurch rebuild, Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Steven Joyce and Minister of Pacific Island Affairs Hekia Parata announced today.

The initiative, part of the Government’s wider Skills for Canterbury contingency package of $42 million, is providing up to 300 fees-free places in trades training throughout New Zealand.

The fall in unemployment from 6.6 per cent to 6.3 per cent in the December 2011 quarter is further evidence the economy is heading in the right direction, Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce says.

The results from Statistics New Zealand show that 3000 more people were employed in the quarter.