Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Minister for Education) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Tangney for reminding the House that the Leader of the Opposition, when he was the Minister for Education, planned to cut $1.2 billion in schools funding from Western Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory. The coalition's funding promise was that we would put $2.8 billion into schools funding over the forward estimates while Labor's promise was that they would cut $1.2 billion, reducing the total amount of funding to $1.6 billion. I table a document showing the impact that the re-election of Labor would have had on schools across Western Australia. Imagine my surprise when I heard, on the weekend, claims by the shadow minister for education that the government was cutting education funding in Western Australia. Under Labor, she would have been right. Under Labor, Western Australia would have experienced a funding cut. Under the coalition government, on the other hand, she was wrong. We are putting $120 million more over the forward estimates into schools funding in Western Australia.

I do not blame the shadow minister. She was right to be confused. She was probably confused because similar claims have been made by the Leader of the Opposition. He too has said that he was putting $2.8 billion into schools funding, when he was actually only putting $1.6 billion into schools funding. It is like when he said that he was against the mining tax but he voted not repeal it in Canberra, or when he said he was against the rising cost of living but he voted against the carbon tax being repealed in Canberra. The Leader of the Opposition is the Mr Potato Head of Australian politics. You can put whatever face you like on the Leader of the Opposition—

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