John Murphy (Lowe, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Education, Science and Training. Minister, are you aware that this year the entry score for an Australian full fee paying university place was nearly 15 marks lower than a HECS place in secondary education and arts at the University of Sydney and 10 marks lower than for a bachelor of education and arts degree at the University of Adelaide? Minister, isn’t it hypocritical for the government to complain about teacher standards when it is selling teaching degrees to people with significantly lower entry marks? Doesn’t this show that the government is hell bent on Americanising our education system?

Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Women's Issues) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I will tell you what is hypocritical. What is hypocritical is that the Australian Labor Party are prepared to allow Australian students to study at the University of New South Wales Singapore campus—they are quite prepared to allow them to pay fees to study in Singapore; they voted for it—but then they say that a full fee paying student should not be able to do the same in Australia. This is all about choice for students. If Labor want to have a debate about lower standards then bring it on, because that is what the Australian government is committed to ensuring—that our students have a greater focus on literacy and numeracy standards. It is a disgrace that our universities are having to divert resources to remedial English classes at university. That is a failing of the state education systems.