In mid-May, Treasurer Jim Chalmers will hand down his third and most significant budget. In the latest instalment of Crikey’s Paint by Numbers series, we break down the key figures illustrating the staggering rise in the cost of living over the past four years.
Australians with a Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) debt: 2.95 million
Average student debt in 1990: $10,400
Average student debt in 2023: $26,494
Total outstanding HECS/HELP debt in 2005: $12.4 billion
Total outstanding HECS/HELP debt in 2023: $78 billion
Increase, in real terms, between the average HECS/HELP debt held by an Australian in their 20s since 2006:
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