Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I refer the Prime Minister to the comments of the principal of the Berwick Lodge Primary School in the Australian today, which said that schools ‘are being harassed into signing off on templates they didn’t want’. It also said the guidelines for the school stimulus debacle ‘explicitly state that the Commonwealth reserves the right to refuse funding to a participant who releases information publicly’, accuses ‘state bureaucrats in being complicit in the siphoning off of vast sums from government schools’ and says that state bureaucrats have ‘accepted templates with only the flimsiest of building details and a total absence of costing valuations’. Why won’t the Prime Minister step in and refer the school stimulus debacle to the Auditor-General?

Don Randall (Canning, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Energy and Resources) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Randall interjecting

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I always enjoy the interjections by the member for Canning, who made a personal explanation recently and said he supported government borrowing in order to provide investment in schools in his electorate. Today he has a different tune, but, then again, opportunism is writ large on the faces of those opposite.

As I said in response to the first question from the Leader of the Opposition, the Building the Education Revolution guidelines contain a specific provision that P&Cs or parent bodies who consider that a proposed allocation of funding under the BER program is not in accordance with the guidelines should write to the national BER coordinator, who may, where appropriate, after considering the objectives of the BER program and guidelines, discuss the school’s concerns with the relevant state and territory or block grant authority. That was outlined in the guidelines to begin with, and I would say to any P&C and any P&F out there across the country: in the implementation of a program which goes to 7½ thousand primary schools across the nation, as we said from the beginning, inevitably you are going to have discussions and disagreements at the local level about what is wanted. That is normal; that is natural; that is why we have had so many representations, I think, from members on that side of the House and members here about finessing details on the ground. That is normal and natural. That is why the guidelines contain an explicit provision, which they do, about an opportunity for P&Cs and P&Fs to reflect those views to the national BER coordinator—and I invite them all to do so.

I am very pleased that the member for Sturt has asked this question as well, because I would like him to also begin to reflect on which of these allocations he would find unacceptable in the electorate of Sturt. Burnside Primary School, which I understand he attended, was $2½ million. Campbelltown Primary School at Paradise—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. The Prime Minister has invited me to answer his question; I am happy to do so. Is he suggesting that every dollar be spent only in Labor electorates?

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Sturt will resume his seat! I warn the member for Sturt.

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In this debate about the allocation of funding, I would draw your attention to the stark contrast with the Auditor-General’s report in relation to the regional program—

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Regional rorts.

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

the regional rorts program under the previous government, which indicated an excessive concentration of resources in particular seats held by a particular party, namely the National Party. Ten seats represented what proportion of the overall allocation?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Half.

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Half of the overall allocation. What we have said from the outset is that we are out there to support the economy as a whole and the education system as a whole, government electorates and non-government electorates, government schools and non-government schools. The objective of the exercise is to provide employment opportunities for tradies, for sparkies, for local people and small business, and for others who are contributing to the construction industry in the country, as opposed to sitting on our hands and doing nothing.

Again I go back to the member for Sturt, who is obviously very sensitive about the investments which are being made in his electorate. I look forward to his subsequent statement about which of these—I presume he can speak in the MPI debate—he objects to: Burnside Primary School classroom redevelopment, half a million dollars; Campbelltown Primary School classroom refurbishment, $600,000; Campbelltown Primary School library new construction, $1.4 million; East Marden Primary School new construction, $2½ million; East Torrens Primary School library new construction, $1.7 million; East Torrens Primary School classroom refurbishment, $300,000; Gilles Plains Primary School hall new construction, $2 million; Heritage College—

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Prime Minister will resume his seat.

Damian Hale (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Hale interjecting

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Solomon is warned. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition on a point of order?

Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister was asked why he will not refer this debacle to the Auditor-General. He has still not answered why he will not refer it. That is the question he has been asked time and time again.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition will resume her seat. The Prime Minister is responding to the question.

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Plainly those opposite are embarrassed at the recitation of the funding allocations to the individual schools within their electorates. That is why every parliamentary device will be used by those opposite. They stand up and try to interrupt a clear description of what investments are proposed for individual schools within their area.

To go back to the member for Sturt’s electorate: Heritage College at Oakden, $2 million for the construction of a multipurpose hall with student amenities; Highbury Primary School library new construction, $1.6 million; Highbury Primary School hall refurbishment, $1.4 million; Hillcrest Primary School, $850,000; Klemzig Primary School, $2 million. I have only just got up to K; it goes all the way to Z.

I say to the honourable member for Sturt, therefore, that, when he is seeking at the dispatch box to launch a negative attack on this overall program, he has simultaneously a moral responsibility in this place to make it clear to each of those school communities which of the allocations to them he objects to. I would invite each member who would rise in this place to do the same because at the end of the day you cannot walk two sides of the street here.

I also say to the honourable member who has asked the question that the other rationale for what we have done through the school modernisation program is this: how do you boost also small business and jobs? I draw the honourable member’s attention to today’s Sensis survey that shows that confidence among small and medium sized businesses recorded the biggest increase on record in the three months to May. I was challenged earlier on about whether the government would be saying something positive about the economy. I note there is conspicuous silence on the part of those opposite. This, of course, comes on the back of the biggest increase in consumer confidence in 22 years. The survey states:

Again this quarter the Federal Government’s economic stimulus packages provided the main reason that SMEs—

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition can resume her seat. I suggest to the Prime Minister that he relate his material to the question and ignore invitations made by way of argument in a point of order.

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Building the Education Revolution program, which I have been asked a question about, goes to the implementation on the ground of this project to boost education performance in Australia and the underlying rationale, which is to provide also stimulus to the economy in the midst of the worst global recession in 75 years. Sensis says:

The main reason that SMEs gave for supporting the Federal Government was the economic stimulus plan.

That includes, of course, infrastructure development.

Whether it is on the infrastructure side, the employment side, the job side or the Building the Education Revolution side, the government is proud of this program. Of course, as I said before in answer to earlier questions, there will always be discussions and disagreements on the ground about what priorities should be attached. That is normal. That is why the guidelines made explicit a provision for local P&Cs to register their concerns. I urge each and every one of them to do that so that any individual matters which need to be attended to can be attended to through the processes we outlined from the outset.

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I seek leave to table the letter from Henry Grossek, the Principal of Berwick Lodge Primary School: ‘Schools’ pride felled by bullying bureaucrats’.

Government Members:

Government members interjecting—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What are you frightened of?

Leave not granted.