Matt Burnell (Spence, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Perhaps I shouldn't be taking Pink Floyd quite so literally, but, to disagree with the legends themselves, we do in fact need education. I thank the member for Robertson for moving this motion on such an important issue, one that forms a cornerstone amongst the bedrock of many facets of public policy, with policies aimed at not just levelling the playing field across all forms of education but equipping Australians of all ages and all abilities with the building blocks needed to build themselves up while they work towards playing their part in building an Australia for the future, one that we can all be proud of.

Education starts at early childhood and continues onward on a journey that doesn't necessarily have a use-by date. Education is, after all, a lifelong journey—an extremely rich and rewarding one. As such, this motion also provides me with ample opportunity to speak to the impacts that both the presence and absence of a world-class education system can mean for the Australia of today and the Australia of tomorrow. Having the opportunity to obtain a quality education is often one of life's great equalisers.

But, as so often is the case, that is contingent on every child—every student—having equal access to a quality education. For many, this simply does not eventuate. Oftentimes, the disparity between the haves and the have-nots can frankly be quite confronting. These impacts can be felt in the immediate term but have knock-on effects in the longer term, too. In early September last year, I made remarks in this place in support of legislation that would implement a number of reforms from the Australian Universities Accord interim report. I spoke of the need for a number of these reforms to flow to my electorate of Spence. Since reading the interim report, I have continued to been a vocal advocate for the establishment of a tertiary hub within my electorate.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to start reading through the final report of the Australian Universities Accord. I felt it poignant to discuss a few aspects of the report along with higher and vocational education and training. Jobs and Skills Australia anticipates that, over the next decade, more than 90 per cent of new jobs will require post-school qualifications, with 50 per cent requiring a bachelor's degree or higher. The report notes that a failure to increase student numbers to meet these needs could do lasting damage to Australia's prospects for national economic success.

The OECD defines tertiary education as being at a level 'higher than diploma'; 16½ per cent of Spence have attained an education of that level. For a bachelor's degree or higher, that number sinks to 9.5 per cent. This is supplemented by the nearly 40 per cent who have obtained a VET qualification. One of the big contributors to this number is Elizabeth TAFE—an institution whose students and educators I was extremely proud to visit alongside the Minister for Skills and Training some time ago. But those are starkly contrasted by the numbers in the bottom end of the nation when it comes to tertiary education.

A university education is not something everyone must have immediately after high school. Education is not a linear journey nor a timed one. But having the right settings in place across all forms of education to give everyone the best chance of obtaining such an education for the future does have a clock ticking above it. These numbers do not occur as a coincidence or in a vacuum. We must act to reduce barriers to entry and mitigate a number of entrenched disadvantages experienced by many of those who aspire to study at university. That is an aspirational class I can certainly get behind.

Education is as valuable to society as it is to the individual. It is transformative to the lives of those who have the support necessary to overcome challenges that would prevent their willingness and ability to study and reach their full potential. I'm especially proud to be part of a government that supports education, whether that be by addressing teacher shortages through the National Teacher Workforce Action Plan—a comprehensive strategy designed to attract and retain educators—by using the Schools Upgrade Fund to build educational infrastructure and environments where students can thrive or by working with state and territory education ministers to reduce the school funding equity gap as part of the National School Reform Agreement being negotiated this year. Filling that gap will help thousands of children in my electorate realise potential they may not have known existed.

With 35,000 students in Spence, particularly those 25,000 from public schools, I can think of thousands of reasons to get this right. To my old teachers Mr Fitzgibbon, from when I was at primary school, and Mr Blue, from when I was at senior college, thank you very much for the knowledge that you imparted on me to allow me to get to this place. I really appreciate it. Thank you.

See this speech in context