Gary Hardgrave (Moreton, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

This is not a question and answer period; this is a series of five-minute speeches. You should understand the rules of engagement. What I am prepared to do is to engage on the point that it is not reasonable to suggest that I have not answered any of your questions and inquiries. In fact, I have, but the member for Jagajaga chooses not to want to listen to the responses, because it does not suit her predetermined purpose.

With regard to the industry skills councils, this also makes my earlier point very plain—that is, obviously none of the state ministers is talking to her. At the recent Ministerial Council for Vocational and Technical Education this subject was raised by state ministers, and they asked to be involved in the process, which, at an earlier ministerial council meeting, they had charged me to execute. Under the Skilling Australia’s Workforce Agreement, the national training agreement, there was consideration that all elements of the training system would be subject to review, including the industry skills council. My department has undertaken an extensive range of consultations with industry groups, unions and the state departments of education and training to seek their views. State ministers will be further consulted on the matter and will make some decisions later in the year. Frankly, at the end of it—and I think that one of the ministers made this point—we have to be sure that all elements of the national training system are contributing to the way the system operates. One way or another, whether or not the industry skills councils are performing their tasks is something we will make a decision on as is appropriate and that will be decided by state ministers and me. It simply proves yet again that the state ministers will not talk to the member for Jagajaga. She has no research potential other than to ask these questions. It really is quite sad how disconnected she is from the national debate on training.

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