Steve Georganas (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the House:

(1)

recognises that the Federal Government needs to invest in education and improving the skills of Australians to ensure that all students have the opportunity to complete Year 12 at high school and ensure that they have appropriate entry-level training for their chosen trade or vocation; and

(2)

condemns the failure of the Government to invest in education and skills for Australia’s future, particularly when the commodity boom moderates.

It is imperative for the future of Australia and Australia’s next generation that we recognise the need to invest in education and improving the skills of Australians. We need to ensure that all students have the opportunity to complete year 12 at high school and/or have the appropriate entry level training for their chosen trade or vocation. The federal government has shown a lack of commitment to investing in the future education and skills of Australians and continues to rely on the mining boom to support our nation’s economy. It is common sense that the more you invest in education, skills and training, the more you invest in your country’s future.

Labor is willing to commit to that investment. It has set goals for Australia’s education system that will ensure Australia’s economy remains prosperous and productive. We on this side of the House make a commitment to placing training centres in all secondary schools. We make a commitment to providing educational avenues to all young Australians so that they can achieve their best. Not everyone is suited to university and many see their future within the trades sector. Skilling up and learning a trade is something that Labor and I, personally, support.

For over a decade Australia’s education system has suffered at the hands of this federal government. Our education standards have slumped, and as a result Australia is now in the middle of a skills crisis. Australia no longer has a strong skills base that industry is able to draw on. Unless we educate our young people, Australia does not have a future.

The income and prosperity of an individual is often strongly tied to the education and skills that they have obtained over the years. Australia’s goal should be to have the most qualified and the most trained workforce in the world. Australia therefore needs to meet two great changes: one, to improve learning at high school level; and, two, to increase the skills of our workforce.

There are many schools within my electorate of Hindmarsh that are calling out for a greater emphasis on vocational education within their education program. The Labor Party has given them a solution. That solution is to give these schools the opportunity to obtain funding for trade workshops, computer laboratories and design labs. I am constantly approached by schools that have students who see their future in studies outside the university sector and who are well suited to pursuing future training in the trades sector.

As a nation we need to be aware that young people in the many schools in our own neighbourhoods need to be able to make choices that will make them successful and productive members of our society. We need to encourage vocational education and training within schools, thus building a skills base for Australia’s future. There is currently no national plan for the future education of Australian students.

Labor has made a commitment to increasing retention rates in schools from the current level of 75 per cent to 90 per cent by 2020. In the midst of a skills crisis, Australia needs to look at why young people are not continuing their schooling and not seeking further training or education. It is estimated that 120,000 Australians aged from 18 to 24 who have not completed year 12 are not engaged in the nation’s workforce. If these individuals were meaningfully engaged in the workforce, this would go a long way to meeting the estimated skills needed for the next five years.

We need to improve our retention rates at schools. We need to give students more opportunities at schools. We need to provide training in skills associated with a particular trade while allowing young people to continue to study and finish high school. Increasing retention rates has the potential to contribute enormously to our economy. Increased retention rates would add $9 billion to Australia’s economy by the year 2040.

In the future we will face more intense competition from regional trading partners such as China and India. In addition to this, our ageing population will take many of the skills Australia’s workforce has today into retirement. Australia needs to invest in the education of its students so that, as a country, we can be competitive in the growing global market. The mining boom the country is currently experiencing will not last forever. That is why it is important that we engage Australia’s youth—they are the key to our country’s future. As a country, we can no longer deny training opportunities to our young people. Nor can we allow our education system to focus on a ‘one size fits all’ policy. A versatile, innovate education policy will ensure our future. That is why Labor is investing in our nation’s education and in our country’s economic prosperity.

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