Warning to universities: Build more houses to keep international students

Universities should invest more in residential housing for international students to ease pressure on supply, Premier Chris Minns says, arguing the tertiary sector needs to shoulder more responsibility for addressing the heat in the migration debate.

As the Albanese government prepares new migration laws expected to make it harder for international students to extend their stay , Minns says the university sector has a greater role to play housing new enrolments.

Minns said that universities would be better placed to “ride the ups and downs of whatever political climate” if they invested more in housing, arguing the sector has more to do to address the concern about demand from international students impacting supply.

“They’ve got balance sheets, they’ve got land, they’ve got a captive market because they know that there’s x number of students coming in,” he said.

“They can help us with the residential accommodation demands of a big sector. You know, we say to the mining sector, you’ve got to manage tailings, you’ve got to manage offtake, you’ve got to have your planning and green credentials in place. I think the education sector’s got to think about the externalities associated with their industry.

“At the moment it’s ‘oh, it’s not our responsibility’. And then they’re tipping thousands and thousands of kids into the Sydney housing market, which is fine, but ultimately, when you live in the second most expensive city in the world, it’s going to have an impact.”

Minns has been increasingly willing to weigh in on the migration debate as his federal counterparts seek to neutralise an issue that has driven increased support for Pauline Hanson and One Nation.

While some state leaders, most notably South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas, have cautioned against significant cuts to net migration, Minns has taken a different tack, arguing the states should have a greater say in overseas arrivals while also endorsing the Commonwealth’s looming changes.

He has also indicated he was open to a cut to overseas student numbers, despite warnings from the state’s universities about the economic impact of such a move. During a press conference alongside University of Western Sydney Vice Chancellor George Williams in New Delhi a fortnight ago, Minns said a cut to overseas students would be “challenging but not fatal” to the sector.

Overseas students have long been a crucial source of revenue for Australian universities.