Introductory Info
Date introduced: 14 May 2020
House: House of Representatives
Portfolio: Education, Skills and Employment
Commencement: The day after the Act receives Royal Assent.
Purpose of
the Bill
The purpose of the National
Skills Commissioner Bill 2020 (the Bill) is to establish the National
Skills Commissioner (the Commissioner). A Commissioner has been in place in an
interim capacity since October 2019.[1]
The National Skills Commissioner Act (when enacted)
will provide for the Minister with responsibility for vocational education and
training (VET) to appoint a Commissioner to advise the Minister or Secretary of
the relevant department, currently the Department of Education, Skills and
Employment (DESE), about:
- Australia’s
current, emerging and future workforce needs
- VET
pricing
- public
and private return on VET investment
- VET
system performance and
- issues
affecting Australian and international labour markets.
It will also require the Commissioner to produce an annual
report to the Minister outlining Australia’s current, emerging and future
workforce skills needs, which will be tabled in Parliament and published.
The Bill does not:
- confer
any authority on the Commissioner to set VET course fees
- impose
any specific requirements regarding consultation, collaboration, or
coordination with existing state and territory or Commonwealth VET bodies or
- make
any reference to the Commissioner’s independence.
Background
Basis for the commitment
The creation of a National Skills Commission (the
Commission) was announced in the 2019–20 Budget as part of the Government’s
response to the 2019 Strengthening Skills:
Expert Review of Australia's Vocational Education and Training System
(the Joyce Review).[2]
The Joyce Review described the Commission as the core of
its proposed approach to VET, and recommended it have responsibility for:
- working
with the states and territories on VET funding
- administering
all Commonwealth funding to the VET sector based on strategic policy direction
from the Minister
- developing
and updating clearly linked national, state and territory level and regional
skills demand forecasts, with departmental skills resources to be transferred
into the Commission
- determining
nationally consistent subsidy levels for VET study, in partnership with the states
and territories, based on averaged actual costs of delivery for providers
nationwide and
- determining
nationally consistent percentage loadings for rural and remote areas and
disadvantaged groups.[3]
The 2019–20 Budget announced:
$48.3 million over four years from 2019–20 for the
establishment of a National Skills Commission that will develop efficient
pricing for training, informed by the work of the Productivity Commission. The
Skills Commission will also oversee Skills Organisations to ensure industry is
leading the development of VET qualifications and training products.[4]
Consultation
Consultations on the design of the Commission were
conducted between September and December 2019.[5]
A discussion paper to inform consultations was released in September.[6]
In response to the discussion paper, 59 submissions, 13
workshops, and two small business roundtables addressed the Commission’s roles
and responsibilities, capabilities, and governance structure.[7]
A total of 35 individual consultations were also undertaken, including with
senior VET officials from each state and territory except Tasmania.[8]
In May 2020, the DESE released a summary of the
consultation feedback.[9]
While not providing detailed recommendations or indicating strong consensus
among consultation participants, the summary outlines the following broad areas
of interest among stakeholders:
- centralised
VET information and skills forecasting
- consistent
VET pricing, balanced with local flexibility
- setting
standards for high quality VET
- system
performance monitoring
- a
new strategic approach to industry engagement
- promotion
of the VET sector and
- oversight
of training product development.[10]
The summary also outlines agreement about the need for:
- building
partnerships across the VET sector, including state and territory and existing
Commonwealth bodies, in order for the Commission to function effectively and
- governance
arrangements to enable the Commission to operate as an ‘enduring institution’
with shared responsibility for VET with the states and territories, a close
relationship with industry, and the ability to work efficiently without
multiple levels of reporting and accountability.[11]
Current architecture of the national VET system
One of the key challenges of creating a new VET body is
evident in the consensus among stakeholders about the need for the Commission
to build effective partnerships and share responsibility for VET, without being
hampered by multiple levels of reporting and accountability.
In addition to skills policy and program responsibilities
within Australian Government and state and territory departments, there are already
a large number of other interacting organisations with responsibility for different
parts of the VET system, at both national and state and territory level:
- the
Council of Australian Governments (COAG), through the Skills
Council, was responsible for managing the shared interests of Commonwealth
and state and territory governments in skills and workforce development.[12]
COAG agreed to a shared
vision for the VET system (the Vision) on 9 August 2019.[13]
Following the Prime Minister’s announcement at the end of May 2020,
arrangements to replace COAG with a new National Federation Reform Council are
currently being reviewed[14]
- the Australian Industry and Skills Committee (AISC)
is responsible for working under the Skills Council to develop and approve national
training packages, supported by industry-specific Industry
Reference Committees, which have representation from large and small
businesses, and peak bodies and unions[15]
- the
national VET regulator, the Australian
Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) is responsible for registration of training
providers, accreditation of VET accredited courses and registration of VET and
English language course providers who wish to offer courses to overseas
students studying in Australia (CRICOS)[16]
- the Victorian
Registration and Qualifications Authority and the Western
Australian Training
Accreditation Council regulate providers which only offer courses in
Victoria or Western Australia, and do not enrol overseas students—such
providers do not need to register with ASQA, while providers in other states
and territories must always register with the national regulator[17]
- the
National Centre for Vocational Education
Research (NCVER) is the nation body responsible for collecting, managing,
analysing and communicating research and statistics on Australia’s
VET sector[18]
- the
National Careers Institute
(NCI), established in July 2019 as another of the actions in response to the
Joyce Review, is responsible for providing career information and support[19]
- a
range of state and territory bodies have responsibility for policy advice,
program delivery, and oversight of VET, with various arrangements in place in
different jurisdictions.[20]
History of national skills commissions in Australia
Technical and Further Education Commission
In April 1973, in the context of growing concern that
Australian Government funding for VET was insufficient to meet skill needs compared
with other areas of tertiary education, Minister Kim Beazley outlined ‘an
urgent need for a critical examination of all aspects of vocational training in
Australia’.[21]
The resulting Australian Committee of Technical and Further Education (ACOTAFE)
delivered its landmark report, TAFE in Australia: Report
on Needs in Technical and Further Education (Kangan Report) in April
1974.[22]
The Kangan Report set out a detailed proposal for an
Australian Commission on Technical and Further Education.[23] It anticipated the new
Commission would ‘facilitate consultation with and among the States so as to
bring about commonality in the conceptual and philosophic frameworks within
which TAFE is developing.’[24]
The proposed Commission would operate through five Standing Committees,
specialising in finance, research, statistics, course development, and
buildings and equipment.[25]
In response, in 1975, the Government established the Technical
and Further Education Commission (TAFE Commission) under the Technical and
Further Education Commission Act 1975. The Minister’s second reading
speech framed the TAFE Commission as a complement to the Universities
Commission, the Commission on Advanced Education and the Schools Commission,
which were already in place at the time, and suggested that it would be the
final step in ‘establishing a complete range of expert, independent bodies to
advise the Government on needs and priorities in the various sectors of
education’.[26]
When established, the TAFE Commission consisted of a
Chair, Deputy Chair, and between five and ten other members, appointed by the
Governor-General.[27]
It was responsible for enquiring into and providing information and advice to
the Minister about:
- the
development of TAFE in Australia
- desirable
standards for buildings, equipment, teaching and other staff and facilities
- the
needs, in respect to buildings, equipment, staff and other facilities, of
institutions, and priorities for satisfying those needs
- grants
of financial assistance to the states and the conditions (if any) for such
assistance and
- any
other matters referred by the Minister, or which the Commission considered
required enquiry.[28]
In recognition of the shared responsibilities for VET, the
TAFE Commission was also required to consult with the other commissions, and
the state and territory bodies responsible for VET.[29]
Commonwealth Tertiary Education Commission
In 1977, the TAFE Commission, Universities Commission and
Commission on Advanced Education were replaced with a single overarching body,
the Commonwealth Tertiary Education Commission (CTEC) under the Commonwealth
Tertiary Education Commission Act 1977. CTEC took up the advisory and
consultation responsibilities of the preceding commissions, with the specialist
expertise of each commission transferred to councils under CTEC, VET being represented
by the Technical and Further Education Council.[30]
Like the TAFE Commission, CTEC was a multi-member body
with membership appointed by the Governor-General.[31]
It was made up of a Chair and nine other members, with two representatives with
particular responsibility for each sector.[32]
The Technical and Further Education Advisory Council Chair and Deputy Chair
were part of CTEC, and the Council also included six other members.[33]
CTEC was also responsible for administering funding
programs where required or authorised by an Act or where required by the
Minister.[34]
National Board of Employment, Education and Training
The commission model came to an end in 1988 as part of the
Minister for Employment, Education and Training’s efforts to rationalise
advisory structures in the portfolio. The commissions were abolished and
replaced by the National Board of Employment, Education and Training (NBEET)
under the Employment,
Education and Training Act 1988.[35]
Like CTEC, NBEET was a multi-member body, supported by specialist
councils for each sector.[36]
VET was represented by the Employment and Skills Formation Council.[37] However, NBEET did not make recommendations for the annual
allocation of grants, or have responsibility for program administration—these
functions instead moved into the department, which represented a shift of power
to the Minister.
The Employment and Skills Formation Council continued to
operate as an advisory body under NBEET until 1996, when the new Coalition
Government began acting on its election commitment to wind up NBEET.[38]
Australian
National Training Authority
In 1992, alongside the continued operation of NBEET,
arrangements again changed following the agreement of the Australian Government
and state and territory skills ministers to a set of national goals and
objectives for vocational education and training, which was formalised through
the establishment of the Australian National Training Authority (ANTA) under
the Australian
National Training Authority Act 1992.[39]
ANTA’s functions were significantly broader than that of
NBEET. It was responsible for formulating, developing and implementing national
VET policy, and allocating Commonwealth grants to the states under funding
agreements.[40]
The VET Ministerial Council had oversight of the operations of ANTA and state
and territory training agencies retained responsibility for VET within each
jurisdiction’s borders, and ensured that programs were consistent with plans
and agreements approved by the Ministerial Council.[41]
Under the ANTA Agreement, arrangements involved multiple
layers of administration, including:
- agreed
national goals, objectives and priorities
- a
national strategic plan, which set out the strategic directions for VET over
the medium term (three to five years)
- planning
parameters, which set out the targets and priorities a year in advance, and
included indicative estimates for the following two years and
- profiles,
which set out specific state and territory plans for the provision and support
of VET, including course provision, services, and infrastructure.[42]
The 1996 Report of the Review of
the ANTA Agreement (Taylor Review) stated that the ANTA Agreement was
‘a major achievement and an example of how federation should work’, but cited
‘no strong sense of ownership of ANTA as an organisation’ among key
stakeholders.[43]
Although the review recommended retaining ANTA, it also identified issues
related to:
- scope,
with key government officials not involved in ANTA
- the
complexity and bureaucracy of the system, which had come under strong criticism
from industry
- regulatory
arrangements within states and territories, with regulators also acting as
purchasers of training and
- a
failure to effectively implement competition, with a lack of recognition of the
role of TAFE coupled with a ‘for its own sake’ approach to competition that had
not necessarily delivered efficiency.[44]
Following the 2004 election, the Prime Minister announced
that ANTA would be abolished from July 2005 and its responsibilities taken into
the then Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR).[45]
The new arrangements were set in the Skilling
Australia’s Workforce Act 2005, which made provision for:
- the
Ministerial Council to have oversight of financial assistance under the Act[46]
- Australian
Government conditions of funding, both in the Act and through bilateral funding
agreements[47]
and
- a
‘Skilling Australia’s Workforce Agreement’, to contain national goals and objectives
for VET, policies and priorities, planning arrangements, initiatives, and
performance measures.[48]
Skills Australia
Following a period without a statutory skills advisory
body from 2005, Skills Australia was established in 2008 under the Skills Australia
Act 2008, to give effect to the Australian Labor Party’s 2007 election
commitment to address skills shortages.[49]
Skills Australia aimed to address skills shortages by
supplying expert and independent research, analysis and advice to government on
Australia’s workforce development and skill needs, although it was subject to
Ministerial direction regarding how it performed its functions.[50]
It marked a return to a multi-member Australian Government advisory body
without responsibility for program administration or explicit state and
territory ownership, but with responsibility to maintain relationships with
states and territories and their relevant authorities.[51]
Australian Workforce Productivity Agency
The 2011–12 Budget announced Skills Australia would be
replaced by the Australian Workforce and Productivity Agency (AWPA) (initially
named the National Workforce and Productivity Agency), with a broader remit
than Skills Australia.[52]
The transition from Skills Australia to AWPA was prompted
by:
- industry
and union calls for an increased focus on workplace productivity and better
linkages between skills funding and industry needs and
- a
recommendation from Skills Australia (in its national workforce development
strategy) that a new partnership approach to workforce development be adopted,
involving government, industry and enterprises.[53]
AWPA began operating in an interim capacity in October
2011:
On 21 September 2011, Senator the Hon Chris Evans, the then
Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations,
announced that Government will bring forward the work of the National Workforce
and Productivity Agency to 1 October 2011. At that time, the Skills Australia
Board was joined by three additional Members to form a Skills Australia
transition advisory committee which will operate as the interim board of the
National Workforce and Productivity Agency. The three additional Members are Mr
Paul Howes, Mr Peter Anderson, and Dr John Edwards.[54]
The Skills Australia
Amendment (Australian Workforce and Productivity Agency) Act 2012 amended
the Skills
Australia Act 2008 to establish AWPA in place of Skills Australia, and
take on the functions of the previous body. The key functions of the expanded
body were to develop sectoral workforce development plans, undertake research,
consult industry, disseminate information on workforce planning issues, and
administer the $558 million National Workforce Development Fund.[55]
In July 2014, the work and staff of AWPA was transferred
into the Department of Industry, as part of Smaller Government reforms,
beginning the current period without a statutory skills advisory body.[56]
Despite initial support for the establishment of Skills Australia and evidence
that the agency’s advice was generally well regarded, there appears to have
been little public commentary on the decision to abolish AWPA.[57]
Committee consideration
Senate Selection of Bills Committee
At its meeting of 13 May 2020, the Senate Selection of
Bills Committee deferred consideration of the Bill to its next meeting.[58]
Senate Standing Committee for
the Scrutiny of Bills
At the time of writing, the Senate Standing Committee for
the Scrutiny of Bills had not considered the Bill.[59]
Policy position of non-government parties/independents
At the time of writing, non-government
parties/independents have not commented on the details of the Bill.
Position of major interest groups
TAFE Directors Australia (TDA), representing public TAFE
and university VET providers, cautiously welcomed the announcement of the
Commission in the 2019–20 Budget, stating:
In a plan that some in the sector may liken to bringing back
the Australian National Training Authority, the Government will establish a
National Skills Commission which will look at the skills and knowledge needed
for the future and develop efficient pricing for training in conjunction with
the Productivity Commission... job projections show that the majority of new jobs
need VET-trained entrants, so the task before it will be clear in terms of current
training demand.[60]
Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA),
which represents private providers in the higher education and VET sectors, has
welcomed the introduction of the Bill, stating:
The analysis by the National Skills Commissioner will provide
independent [Registered Training Organisations] RTOs with clear guidance that
the Australian Government is making the right investment in skills at the right
time. The Commissioner’s guidance will provide certainty to independent RTOs as
they plan for the future of their business.[61]
Financial implications
The Explanatory
Memorandum to the Bill affirms that $48.3 million has been budgeted for the
establishment of the Commission, as announced in the 2019–20 Budget.[62]
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
As required under Part 3 of the Human Rights
(Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011 (Cth), the Government has assessed the
Bill’s compatibility with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared
in the international instruments listed in section 3 of that Act. The
Government considers that the Bill is compatible.[63]
Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights
The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights had no
comments on the Bill.[64]
Key issues and provisions
The National Skills Commissioner
Part 2 of the Bill deals with the establishment and
functions of the Commissioner.
Clause 5 provides a simplified outline of Part 2.
Establishment and functions
Clause 6 establishes the Commissioner.
Clause 7 sets out the functions of the
Commissioner:
- to
provide advice to the Minister or to the Secretary in relation to:
- Australia’s
current, emerging and future workforce skills needs
- the
development of efficient prices for VET courses
- the
public and private return on government investment in VET qualifications
- the
performance of Australia’s system for providing VET
- issues
affecting the state of the Australian and international labour markets
- to,
in relation to the matters listed above, in addition to advising the Minister
or Secretary:
- inform
the public about these matters
- collect,
analyse, share and publish data and other information about these matters to
inform policy development and program delivery and
- any
other function that is conferred on the Commissioner by the rules, by this Act
or by any other law of the Commonwealth, or is incidental or conducive to the
performance of the above functions.
Reporting requirements
Under subclause 7(2), from 1 January 2021, the
Commissioner will be required to prepare and provide to the Minister an annual
report on Australia’s current, emerging and future workforce skills needs, before
the end of the calendar year. Under subclause 7(3), the Minister will be
required to table the report in Parliament as soon as practicable after
receiving it. After the report is tabled, the Commissioner will be required to
publish it on the department’s website, or in a manner specified in the rules,
under subclause 7(4).
Advisory committees
Clause 8 allows for the establishment of advisory
committees to assist the Commissioner, at the discretion of the Minister.
Subclause 8(1) allows the Minster to establish, in
writing, advisory committees to advise the Commissioner in relation to the
performance of the Commissioner’s functions. Subclause 8(2) allows the
Minister to determine an advisory committee’s:
- terms
of reference
- terms
and conditions of appointment for members and
- procedures.
If such an advisory committee is established, subclause
8(3) requires the Commissioner to have regard to any advice it provides.
However, subclause 8(4) clarifies that this requirement is not intended
to limit the matters the Commissioner may consider.
Clause 9 specifies arrangements for the
appointment, remuneration, impartiality, resignation, and termination, of
advisory committee members.
Ministerial direction
Clause 10 allows the Minister to direct, by
legislative instrument, the way in which the Commissioner carries out their
functions, and requires the Commissioner to comply with such directions. The note
to subclause 10(1) clarifies that a legislative instrument made for this
purpose will not be subject to disallowance or sunsetting.
Administrative matters
Part 3 of the Bill deals with administrative
matters.
Clause 11 provides a simplified outline of Part
3.
Clauses 12 to 19 specify arrangements for the
appointment, acting appointment, remuneration, leave of absence, paid work,
other terms and conditions as determined by the Minister, resignation, and
termination, of the Commissioner:
- the
Commissioner is to be appointed by the Minister by written instrument, on a
full-time basis, for a period not exceeding five years, and may be
reappointed—the Minister must be satisfied the person has appropriate
qualifications, knowledge or experience (clause 12)
- if
there is a vacancy in the Office of the National Skills Commissioner, or the
Commissioner is absent from duty or from Australia, or otherwise unable to
perform their duties, the Minister may, by written instrument, appoint a person
to act as the Commissioner—the Minister must be satisfied the person has
appropriate qualifications, knowledge or experience (clause 13)
- remuneration
is to be set by the Remuneration Tribunal, or if no determination by the
Tribunal is in operation, remuneration will be as prescribed in the rules (subclause
14(1))
- allowances
are to be prescribed by the rules (subclause 14(2))
- recreation
leave is to be set by the Remuneration Tribunal (subclause 15(1))
- the
Commissioner may take a leave of absence (other than recreation leave), with
the Minister’s approval, on terms and conditions that the Minister determines (subclause
15(2))
- the
Commissioner may only engage in paid work outside their office with the
Minister’s approval (clause 16)
- other
terms and conditions of the Commissioner’s appointment, not covered in the Act,
may be determined by the Minister (clause 17)
- the
Commissioner’s appointment may be terminated by the Minister:
- for
misbehaviour
- if
the Commissioner is unable to perform the duties of their office due to
physical or mental incapacity
- if
the Commissioner becomes bankrupt, applies to take the benefit of laws for
relief of bankrupt or insolvent debtors, makes an agreement with their
creditors, or makes an assignment of their remuneration for the benefit of
their creditors
- if
the Commissioner is absent without leave for 14 consecutive days, or 28 days in
any 12 months
- if
the Commissioner engages in paid work outside their duties without permission
or
- if
the Commissioner does not comply with section 29 of the Public Governance,
Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act), which deals
with the duty to disclose interests, or any rules made for that section.
Clause 20 specifies that the Commissioner is taken
to be an official of the Department (currently DESE) for the purposes of the finance
law (an Appropriation Act and the PGPA Act, rules and instruments made
under that Act) and that the Department’s annual report, prepared under section
46 of the PGPA Act, must include information on the performance of the
Commissioner’s functions, and the exercise of the Commissioner’s powers, during
the period.
Certain duties of officials are set out in Division 3 of Part
2-2 of the PGPA Act, including a duty of care and diligence, a duty to
act honestly, in good faith and for a proper purpose, a duty not to improperly
use his or her position to gain a benefit or advantage, and a duty not to
improperly use information.
Clause 21 provides that APS employees of the
Department be made available to assist the Commissioner. The Commissioner may
also be assisted by staff of other agencies (clause 22) and consultants
(clause 23).[65]
Other matters
Part 4 deals with miscellaneous provisions.
Clause 24 provides a simplified overview of Part
4.
Clause 25 deals with delegations. It provides that:
- the
Minister may, in writing, delegate their powers to appoint an acting
Commissioner, or to grant the Commissioner a leave of absence, other than recreation
leave, to the Secretary of the Department, or an SES or acting SES employee of
the Department and
- the
Commissioner may, in writing, delegate any or all of their functions or powers
under the Act to a member of staff assisting the Commissioner, or person from
another agency who is assisting the Commissioner, providing the person holds at
least an acting Executive Level 2 position, or equivalent.
Clause 26 provides that the Minister may, by
legislative instrument, make rules prescribing matters required or permitted by
the Act, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving
effect to the Act. The rules may not create an offence or civil penalty,
provide powers of arrest, detention, entry, search or seizure, impose a tax,
set an amount to be appropriated, or directly amend the Act.
Concluding comments
This Bill proposes to give effect to the 2019–20 Budget
commitment to create a National Skills Commission, by establishing a National
Skills Commissioner, supported by advisory committees.
As outlined in the background to this Bills Digest, statutory
skills advisory bodies have a long history in Australia, although they have had
varying degrees of independence and levels of responsibility. The model
proposed in the Bill stands out as the first time a single commissioner
structure has been proposed. This approach is broadly consistent with the changes
proposed in the National
Vocational Education and Training Regulator Amendment (Governance and Other
Matters) Bill 2020, which would see ASQA’s current three-Commissioner
leadership structure replaced with a stand-alone National VET Regulator/CEO,
supported by a ten-member Advisory Council.[66]
Stakeholder consultation suggests that in a crowded
administrative landscape with a large number of existing VET bodies, the
Commissioner’s success will depend in large part on their capacity to work
effectively across stakeholder groups.[67]