Ryan Bridge: What was the point in fees free?

Reading this story this morning about fees free - you've got to wonder how the policy got through the boffins in wellington.

It has, by all accounts, failed to achieve it's objective.

Did we see floods of people charging into lecture halls and studying at university?

No.

Did we see loads of poorer students benefit?

No.

What did it cost us, again? $2.6 billion. $350-million last year alone.

That's one and half brand new Dunedin hospitals.

This is what it got us.

No increase in participation.

230 students from poor schools were helped. That's 1.3%.

A whopping 70% of the kids who had their university fees paid for (up to $12,000 each) were from above-average socio-economic schools.

They were the wealthier kids.

Did they need it? No.

I've always backed the interest-free student loan idea. You can borrow, not stress about interest, and work hard to pay it down once you finish.

But clearly fees free was too much of a free lunch. Not enough discipline or focus.

Now the problem is Winston and national have kept this policy alive. They've just changed it to the final year of study.

The idea is this will encourage students to finish their studies.

Problem? It's not doing that either. No evidence.

So, you've got to ask, with such a high price tag, is the whole thing worth having at all?

Ryan Bridge is a New Zealand broadcaster who has worked on many current affairs television and radio shows. He currently hosts Newstalk ZB's Early Edition - where this article was sourced.