The Abbott government plans to spend almost $15 million on its taxpayer-funded higher education advertising campaign, roughly twice as much as previously disclosed.



The government's higher education package is stalled in the Senate, with key crossbenchers saying they will not vote for fee deregulation even if the government makes major concessions such as scrapping a planned 20 per cent cut to university funding.



The total budget for the campaign was revealed by Auditor-General Ian McPhee following complaints by independent Senator Nick Xenophon and Labor's higher education spokesman, Kim Carr.



The Department of Education and Training advised Mr McPhee that the government had budgeted $14.6 million for the campaign.



This includes $9.5 million on media placements, $2.3 million on creative development and $1.3 million on the campaign website, excluding GST.



Fairfax Media revealed last week that the government had already spent over $8 million on the campaign, which Senator Xenophon slammed as "party political advertising" and Palmer United Party Senator Glenn Lazarus declared "propaganda". But the education department said the campaign was aimed at dispelling myths about the government's proposals, which threatened to deter students from university study.

The first phase of the campaign, which began before Christmas, included television, radio and bus shelter advertisements. The department advised that a second phase of advertising has been budgeted for, with its timing and focus to be determined early this year.



Mr McPhee declined requests to conduct an official audit of the campaign or to assess whether claims made in the advertisements were factual. The campaign will be examined in a broader audit on government advertising expected to begin in the middle of 2015.



"The Australian government has considerable latitude in mounting advertising campaigns," Mr McPhee wrote to senators Carr and Xenophon. "The government establishes the advertising guidelines, which have been flexibly drafted over the years and which may be amended at its discretion."

Education Minister Christopher Pyne has defended the taxpayer-funded campaign. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

A spokesman for Education Minister Christopher Pyne said: "It appears that the Auditor-General has confirmed that the government, like governments before it, has the right to mount information campaigns within established and flexible guidelines, at its discretion.

"The information campaign ... provides prospective students with factual information to help guide their decisions relating to higher education."