Peter Garrett (Kingsford Smith, Australian Labor Party, Minister for School Education, Early Childhood and Youth) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Fowler. On this side of the House we know how important it is to invest in our schools across the member for Fowler's and my home state of New South Wales, where we have some 3,000 schools. Those schools have received 369,806 computers; 140 projects in trades training centres, benefiting 317 schools; 7,000 Building the Education Revolution projects; 1,400 classroom improvements; 746 libraries; and 924 multipurpose halls—and about 823 schools have benefited from the Smarter Schools National Partnerships.

That is a proud record of investment. The numbers are important, because it is a proud record of investment by a government that has got its priorities right. It means we have tens of thousands of students learning in the classroom with 21st century technology, students learning a trade while at school, thousands of modern classrooms built for today and hundreds of schools benefiting, including Bonnyrigg Primary School, which is in the member's electorate. That investment is critical. It has delivered results, but we know there is more to do, and that is why the Prime Minister has announced the National Plan for School Improvement—investing in great teachers, focusing on school improvement and giving more power to school principals.

I am asked about alternative policies.

I guess I would put it this way to answer that question. The opposition leader thinks that the current level of funding for public schooling is an injustice. The shadow spokesperson for education wants to sack one in seven teachers and bring in larger class sizes. And the shadow Treasurer is on the record: he has not found a schools program that he does not want to cut. He was on ABC radio just the other day boasting about how he would cut the funding for trade-training centres. There is $2.8 billion in cuts already on the slate from those opposite.

Just think about the investment in education in Fowler if this negative Liberal Party opposition had their way. We have put 8,300 computers in schools. They would cut it. We put $2 million worth of investment into two trade-training centres. They would cut it. We have put, into 115 projects, $108 million in Building the Education Revolution. The opposition leader slept through the vote—that would be zero.

Of course, members from New South Wales would not be surprised to know that the song remains the same for their Liberal government as well. There has been $1.7 billion in cuts through raising fees, cutting funding to schools and TAFEs, and sacking staff. A footnote to all of that is that, yesterday, the New South Wales Auditor-General discovered 37 mistakes in the New South Wales Liberal government's budget. They are a billion dollars better off than they were in June. I and those on this side have a message: put that billion dollars into education in New South Wales and follow the lead of this government that supports education and wants to make every school a great school. (Time expired)

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