The architect of the country’s higher education loan program says the Albanian government’s plan to reduce existing debts by $16 billion is a political exercise and does not solve the program’s emerging problems, while economists warn that Labor’s proposal will favor high-income earners.

Bruce Chapman, who designed the income-tested student loan system known as HECS for the Hawke government in 1989, said he supported the government’s other changes, including raising the income threshold from $54,000 to $67,000, at which point the loans must be repaid.

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