Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Public Security and Policing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Education. I refer the minister to complaints that I have received from Oatlands Primary School, Berwick Primary School and Berwick Lodge Primary School in my electorate, all of which have different priorities for the infrastructure in their schools than the state bureaucrats who are implementing the minister’s so-called Building the Education Revolution. Minister, why won’t the government implement a real education revolution and give principals in government schools the kind of autonomy that principals in non-government schools have to make decisions that are good for their school communities?

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

I thank the member for La Trobe for the question he asked. Unfortunately for the member for La Trobe, it was clearly written by the member for Sturt and run round to him. I saw that happen with my own eyes. When you take a question from the member for Sturt the premises on which it is based are always wrong. The member for La Trobe may like to study our education revolution reforms, particularly those that we are bringing through our national partnership program for schools.

Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Public Security and Policing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Three schools in Berwick are not happy!

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

Do you want the answer or do you want to sit there and yell? Make a decision.

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

Order! The member for La Trobe will cease interjecting. The Deputy Prime Minister will ignore the interjections.

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

I am going to assume, despite his conduct, that the member for La Trobe is actually interested in education. I know it is a big assumption, but I will assume that. I have been asked about the empowerment of school principals and I am referring the member for La Trobe to our education revolution reforms, particularly the reforms we are delivering through our national partnerships that are delivering more money for disadvantaged schools, more money for literacy and numeracy and more money to improve teacher quality. In those reforms we are working to empower principals in their schools to make decisions about their schools for whole school improvement. Indeed, the very essence of these reforms is that schools that need to lift standards will be empowered locally, working through whole school improvement plans to make decisions on what would make the biggest difference for their school. It might be more teachers, teachers aides, literacy and numeracy coaches, breakfast clubs or after school hours care. There is a suite of reforms working on questions of principal empowerment.

Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Public Security and Policing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Three schools in Berwick are not happy!

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

I know the member for Sturt has not appreciated that—and the member for La Trobe is now repeating his words—but the message for the member for La Trobe is: the words of the member for Sturt are wrong and every time he repeats them he repeats an error and gets something wrong. The member for Sturt has not kept up with, studied or cared about the education revolution, other than to block and vote against things like the nation-building plan for schools and our transparency measures that delivered the My School website. On the question of working with schools under the Building the Education Revolution program, what the member for La Trobe would be aware of is this is a nation-building stimulus. He voted against it. I am sure he goes to his schools every day and says, ‘I don’t want you to have this money. I voted against you having this money.’ He should be doing that because that would be truthful.

Andrew Laming (Bowman, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order: relevance. I know the minister is convinced of the perfection of her revolution, but this is a specific question about three schools in the town of Berwick.

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

Order! 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

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. As I was saying to the member for La Trobe about the three schools in his electorate, who are working on their Building the Education Revolution projects: fact No. 1, the member for La Trobe voted against them having the money; fact No. 2, we are always very willing to work with school communities to work through issues—

Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Public Security and Policing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I want the question answered so I can actually go back and tell the principals—

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

Order! The member for La Trobe will resume his seat.

Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Public Security and Policing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Wood interjecting

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

Order! The member for La Trobe is warned.

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

I conclude by saying: the message for the member for La Trobe is as follows. He should go back to his school community and say: ‘I didn’t want you to have this money. I voted against it.’ If there is some issue the principals would like to raise with a government that cares about education, obviously we always stand ready to work through issues. But let us see some honesty from the member for La Trobe upfront. He opposed every dollar, every brick, every nail and every building project in every school in his electorate.