2. Indexation

There is no set system of guaranteed increases to the base level of the bursary. The Government's policy is to annually review the bursary to take into account increased costs. Its rationale behind this is flexibility.

But this flexibility is not in the interest of university and technical institute students. In reality it means giving students as little if any, as possible. The size of the increase largely depends on the strength of NZUSA a at a given time.

Under the guise of flexibility the bursary level as set out in 1976 has significantly diminished in real terms because of double digit inflation. For this reason NZUSA advocates the indexation of the bursary to an appropriate cost-of-living formula. An example of the type of index that could be used is the Consumer Price Index.

Until the bursary is indexed as costs rise, especially in the basic fields of food, accommodation and text-books, it becomes increasingly inadequate as a grant-in-aid scheme.

The '$9 deal' paper of the Department of Education reveals the extent of the loss of value through inflation. This $9 is based on the STB level at the time of introduction in 1976. However, since the time of announcement in May 1975 the STB has declined in value by 23%.