Andrew Southcott (Boothby, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment Participation, Training and Sport) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Minister for Education and Minister for Social Inclusion. I refer the minister to the decision of the Unley council in Adelaide to sue Walford School in Hyde Park for their action in removing significant trees to make way for school buildings being built through the Primary Schools for the 21st Century program because the guidelines of the program allow the suspension of normal development requirements. Will the federal government consider indemnifying Walford School for any costs it may incur?

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank member for Boothby for his question. Can I say to the member for Boothby: whilst I grew up in the Unley council area, I was actually never elected as a local councillor in Unley. On matters associated with the Unley planning scheme and local government acts in South Australia, he may want to make the change to the South Australian state parliament. I believe they will probably be looking for another opposition leader quite soon, so it could be a very good opportunity for him for his future working life.

In response to the member’s question, what is being done through the Building the Education Revolution is the delivery of economic stimulus urgently to support jobs today during a global recession whilst engaging in the biggest school modernisation—

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

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. A school is being sued as a consequence of the minister’s program.

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

Order! The Deputy Leader of the Opposition will go to her point of order.

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

The minister has been asked if she would consider indemnifying that school for the legal costs incurred.

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

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

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Economic stimulus is being delivered urgently to support jobs now—something, of course, which is not an economic goal of the Liberal Party as stated by the shadow Treasurer—and also to provide the biggest school modernisation program in the nation’s history. It is true that, in order to deliver urgent economic stimulus to support tradespeople and their jobs today, we did ask state governments and local and Catholic education authorities to expedite the delivery of this program. I say to the shadow minister opposite: I really think we are getting to a fairly interesting stage in this debate if it is being suggested that it is a federal government responsibility to deal with a planning dispute about the removal of trees. I think the fact that the Liberal Party has come into this parliament to raise that point says everything about the absolute absurdity of its attitude to a global recession.

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

Mr Speaker, I raise a point of order on relevance. The question was about the minister’s suspension of development rules which allow this to happen. She seems not to know that.

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

Order! The member for Sturt will resume his seat.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. The point of order—or the interjection disguised as a point of order—makes the very point that it is not federal development rules that have been suspended, and planning matters are matters for state governments. But I make this point: it amazes and concerns me that in the middle of a global recession, the biggest economic downturn in 75 years, when a global economic storm is hitting this country and costing Australia jobs, the biggest thing on the mind of the federal opposition in question time in the national parliament is a matter involving a planning dispute about a number of trees in a suburb in Unley. It says everything about being out of touch, out of ideas and out of any contact with reality. If they try focusing on the big picture—jobs today—and try actually developing some education policies, the Liberal Party might find that someone, sometime, somewhere takes them seriously.