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In September 1997, the then Commonwealth Minister for Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs, Senator Amanda Vanstone, requested the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Employment, Education and Training, as a result of concerns that conflict was occurring at the boundaries between TAFE and higher education, to inquire and report on the appropriate role of TAFE and the extent to which it should overlap with university. While the focus of the Inquiry into the Role of Institutes of TAFE was on the role of TAFE and its relationship to universities, the Inquiry also examined whether vocational education and training (VET) provided by TAFE to secondary schools improved school retention, enhanced student interest in learning and equipped them with relevant skills. The report provides background information on TAFE's position in the VET sector, examines the special roles played by TAFE that other providers of further education do not fulfil such as its role in regional Australia, its community service obligations and its contribution to trade training, identifies TAFE's emerging roles as a result of changes such as technological advancement in production and communication, greater international competition, labour market change and developments in secondary education, and discusses the interface between TAFE and higher education and funding and administrative issues. The following were identified as the key roles for TAFE: vocational education; adult and community education; second chance education; and special needs education.