Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Trade and Competitiveness) Share this | Hansard source

I thank my friend and colleague the member for Blair for his question, because I know how much he cares about the people of Blair and of Ipswich. He has been discussing with me the increase in unemployment associated with the savage cuts of the Queensland state government.

We know that investing in skills and education is the pre-eminent source of competitiveness in the 21st century. Yet across coalition states we are seeing savage cuts to investment in education and training. New South Wales is taking $1.7 billion out of schools and cutting 800 TAFE jobs and increasing TAFE fees.

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