Fiona Phillips (Gilmore, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The Albanese government is committed to investing in the skills Australia needs to drive economic growth. Our Free TAFE Bill offers greater certainty to students, employers and industry, and commits the Commonwealth to ongoing support to states and territories for free TAFE.

In regional areas like Gilmore, so many kids want to finish school and gain an apprenticeship or train at their local TAFE. Many don't want to leave home and move to the city to find work or go to uni. They are salt-of-the-earth kids. They've grown up in small coastal towns, and often they want to work hard and follow in the footsteps of their parents, grandparents and siblings, whether that's working as a tradie, a nurse or an early educator. I am so pleased that more than 4,400 students took up free TAFE in my electorate last year. That's school leavers, mums, dads and older people retraining and getting ahead without putting added financial pressure on their family. I've been on the ground and walking the streets, talking with local apprentices, employers and TAFE students to hear about how and why they chose an apprenticeship, and how fee-free TAFE is helping them.

Back in November I visited the Nowra TAFE campus with the Acting Prime Minister. We went into electrical and carpentry classes. We spoke with students and heard how fee-free TAFE is providing that bit of important financial relief for students and their families. These classes are booming at Nowra—training our tradies of the future—thanks to free TAFE.

In October I joined the Minister for Skills and Training to meet with twins Najara and Harrisen, both first-year motor mechanic apprentices at Batemans Bay. The 17-year-old siblings are being trained under the watchful eye of their father, Mark, the owner and director of Batemans Bay Automotive Repairs, who boast more than 20 years experience in the trade. The small family business has been employing and upskilling five apprentices since 2015, providing job opportunities for young people in our region. It was also really great to see this business employing women in a historically male dominated trade. Najara is working in a priority cohort, and has improved access to flexible, safe and inclusive training and work opportunities, which is just fantastic. I could see how passionate she was about cars, and it was great to see her interest in learning more about electric vehicles too. The pair travel to Nowra TAFE once a week and work in a workshop equipped with up-to-date scanning, diagnostic and programming tools for all modern vehicles. They are looking forward to one day taking the helm of their family business, and I'm delighted that TAFE is providing them with the variety of skills needed to do just that.

During the visit we also met with Robert Beattie, the owner of Beach House Stairs at Batemans Bay and a huge supporter of young people and TAFE. You could say Robert knows a bit about training young people, having employed an incredible 45 apprentice carpenters at his business over the past 38 years. It was really great to talk with him, as well as his three current apprentices, about the importance of building the skills and talent in the Australian workforce to meet current and future skills gaps. First-year carpentry apprentices Nathan and Nicholas and second-year apprentice Brendan said that, with no shortage of work in the building industry, they felt confident they had great careers ahead of them. Nathan, 17, from Moruya, said everyone in his family was a tradie, and he wanted to leave school and do hands-on work.

It was so amazing to learn that every one of Robert's employees completed their carpentry apprenticeship with his company. He said his staff could see that there was plenty of work on offer and were enthused by the potential earnings for tradespeople. Established in 1985, Beach House Stairs is a wonderful family business that builds custom designed staircases, timber handrails, balustrades and benchtops. Small businesses like these are committed to training our young people and helping them find their path to a secure future, and, under Labor, they have our support.

It's great to see TAFE booming on the South Coast and the recent introduction of the TAFE Certificate II in Aeroskills, which is also fee free. The aeroskills course is providing our young people with a pathway to an exciting career as an avionics maintainer, to support defence industry jobs locally. We're a proud Navy town, home to HMAS Albatross, the fleet air arm, and HMAS Creswell, so it's really important that we have defence related TAFE courses on offer here to give local students an entry into the industry. Defence and defence industry are our biggest employers, and this aeroskills course will provide local students with an opportunity to fill in-demand roles, such as aircraft maintenance engineers and aircraft line maintenance workers. Through a mixture of theory and practical units, the new course will give students insight from industry experienced teachers to ensure planes—and helicopters, of course—fly smoothly and safely. Students will gain practical experience and develop specialist skills to give them an advantage in the job market, including working on real aircraft components on a variety of aircraft and working safely and sustainably in the industry.

You can clearly see that I have been on the ground, talking with students, employers and apprentices, and I can tell you free TAFE is going gangbusters in Gilmore. I have travelled from one end of my electorate to the other and listened to young people who are training at TAFE and listened to adults who are retraining and gaining new skills. I've been walking the streets of our villages and towns in Gilmore and talking with people who are reaping the real rewards of fee-free TAFE. I've spoken to builders who are under the pump, constructing hundreds of new homes in our fast-growing region. They are screaming out for tradies, from plasterers to brickies, roofers and more. We need to build more homes, we need more tradies and, to do that, we need to continue free TAFE.

As hundreds of students prepare to commence another semester of TAFE in my electorate, including free TAFE courses, I am extremely disappointed that the opposition leader will not support our fee-free TAFE bill. The opposition are showing their absolute disregard for young people and families in regional communities like the South Coast and are completely out of touch with the needs of young Australians. The opposition leader and the Liberals will cut free TAFE funding, and Australians will pay more for TAFE. The opposition will take opportunities away from thousands of hardworking Australians who are getting the skills they need for the jobs they want.

The Liberals have ripped the guts out of TAFE before, and they have made it clear they will do it again. Last time they were in government, we saw the damage that their disregard for the VET system and skilling Australians did. We can't risk the Liberals slashing pathways for workers to enter essential industries like health care, construction and tech again. We have a responsibility to help people here and now. We owe it to the next generation of Australians to build an economy that unlocks their talents and rewards their efforts.

That starts with equal access to education for every Australian, no matter their background or financial situation. Free TAFE is an investment in our future, and it's an investment in our people, ensuring all Australians have the skills and capacity to contribute to a thriving economy. The Liberals' failure to invest in skilling up our people will leave businesses stranded and Australians locked out of reaching their potential.

Supporting vocational education and TAFE training is what Labor does. With high-quality skills and training, we are building a better Australia. A reliable and trusted VET sector is critical for our economy. Under the Liberals, you won't get that. They destroyed TAFE, and under the Liberals my local TAFE campuses looked like a ghost town, as classes were slashed and teachers sacked. I should know; I worked there for over 10 years.

Despite us saving ordinary Australians thousands on TAFE fees, the deputy opposition leader had the nerve to label free TAFE 'wasteful spending'. She says free TAFE isn't working. Well, I can tell you that the Liberals have got it very wrong, because under Labor my local TAFE campuses across Gilmore are thriving. There is a TAFE in nearly every community across Australia, and every community in Australia deserves access to great vocational education and training.

Peter Dutton's demolition of TAFE would mean housing and energy projects couldn't get off the ground because of skills shortages. Businesses would be forced to look overseas for workers instead of employing Australians here at home. Education should not be a privilege. A Labor government will always stand up for public education and local jobs. The Liberals cut $3 billion of funding from the VET system and TAFE, clearly demonstrating they don't understand or value the importance of strong TAFEs in our local communities. More than a third of all the enrolments in free TAFE have been in regional and rural areas like Gilmore.

Public education runs through my veins, and TAFE holds a special place in my heart. I will always fight for public education and stand up against any efforts to undermine TAFE. There is a clear choice at this election. The opposition leader and the Liberals will cut free TAFE funding, and Australians will pay more for TAFE. Under the Albanese government, free TAFE is here to stay.

See this speech in context