Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

The shadow minister, in holding up funding to schools, does so in defiance of the nationally expressed view of the non-government representatives, both independent and Catholic. The shadow minister then says, though he acts in defiance of those representatives, that he is reflecting the concerns of schools like Montessori schools about the national curriculum. I have received a press release from Montessori Australia entitled ‘The Montessori community supports passage of schools assistance bill’, and it quotes spokesperson Christine Harrison:

The Montessori community appreciates the need for robust debate, but what is really important to our parents, schools and the students we educate across the country is certainty of funding as the school year finishes.

Ms Harrison goes on:

We support the introduction of a national curriculum—

that is the Montessori schools speaking—

and see this as an opportunity to continue to work with the Government to allow endorsement of the internationally recognised Montessori curriculum and really only want to see the Bill passed.

She goes on:

We are confident that Montessori schools will be able to offer the Montessori curriculum under the framework of the new national curriculum.

The shadow minister for education in this matter represents no-one. The non-government schools of this nation are calling on the Liberal Party to pass the bill, including the national curriculum. This is now a matter that has gone beyond the shadow minister for education and needs to be dealt with by the Leader of the Opposition. This is a serious matter about the delivery of $28 billion of funds to non-government schools. Non-government schools around the nation are asking the Liberal Party to pass the bill. They support the national curriculum. The Leader of the Opposition must act. If non-government schools do not get these funds because of Liberal obstruction and non-government schools cannot open at the end of January next year, if they are standing down teachers, if they are turning students away and if there is educational chaos, then that will be on the head of the Leader of the Liberal Party and the Liberal Party generally. It seems remarkable to me that the Liberal Party in this country today cannot see its way clear to support funding for non-government schools.

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