The 23-year-old bibliophile was jolted out of his reverie earlier this year as the latest bill for his library technician's course at TAFE hit his inbox. "This would have been the dream": Ex-TAFE student Patrick Wright had to drop out due to higher fees. Credit:Daniel Munoz The course had quadrupled in price as part of the NSW government's Smart and Skilled program. "I just couldn't justify the cost," the Cronulla local said. Mr Wright is just one of 30,000 fewer enrolments in TAFE's campuses last year after fees in courses such as electrical engineering jumped seven-fold to $8190.

"It's like being in a morgue," one TAFE teacher wrote in a submission to the NSW Parliamentary inquiry into vocational education. John Barilaro, NSW Minister for Skills at his Sydney office. Credit:Louise Kennerley On Tuesday NSW Skills Minister John Barilaro did not respond to questions about the mass exodus of students at the NSW parliamentary inquiry at parliament house. The Minister refused to say if he thought the price hikes were the central reason that students had left the vocational trainer in droves. He cited "impediments" and "blockages" such as the now-abandoned policy of not allowing previously qualified students to access subsidies as principal reasons for the "lower than expected student numbers," before attacking political groups for turning it into a political football.

"The greatest threat to TAFE in this state is those who talk about it in a negative vein," said Mr Barilaro. "We can't sit on our hands, we need to make sure that TAFE remains flexible and efficient and compete with other operators in the market." Mr Barilaro also revealed that 6750 fee-free scholarships had been awarded out of a total of 200,000 for disadvantaged students. "The Minister can dodge and weave all he likes," said Greens MLC John Kaye. "The fact is that there are people who are not at TAFE today who would have been if the Liberals hadn't of hiked the fees." With 83,000 students having left TAFE's campuses since 2012, staff are in constant fear of losing their jobs, according to the NSW Teachers Federation. The librarian at TAFE's Sydney Institute, Leon Parissi, said that without TAFE giving him a second chance after flunking his HSC, his future would have been grim.

"I'm a product of the second chance system. I didn't do so well in my HSC, I went to St George TAFE and then on to university, I've been a librarian at Sydney TAFE for 30 years now," he said. Mr Parissi is unsure if he will be cataloguing books for much longer – his library at the TAFE in the Sydney CBD is also up for review. The Public Service Association, which represents non-teaching TAFE workers like Mr Parissi called for a public inquiry into the future of TAFE after it gave evidence at parliament house on Tuesday. "TAFE has a great history of helping those who are disadvantaged, living with disabilities, or are from non-English speaking backgrounds – that is going to fall by the wayside if something is not done," said Public Service Association general secretary Steve Turner.