Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced in November 2024 that the federal government would forgive 20% of student debt if re-elected.

The Greens took the proposal to the next level, vowing to forgive 3 million graduates’ student loans and make university and TAFE education free, at a cost of more than $120 billion over the next decade.

Mehreen Faruqi, the Greens’ deputy leader and higher education spokesperson, stated, “student debt can’t be fixed because student debt shouldn’t exist”.