Michael Danby (Melbourne Ports, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Caulfield Primary was the first school to be built in Caulfield after the Education Act of 1872, giving children access to free education. It gave me great pride to be part of the government who helps continue this legacy of giving first class education to children regardless of means or background when on 6 August I opened their new multipurpose hall, the last of my BER programs. Under the National School Pride Program, the school invested $76,000 in the refurbishment of buildings and playgrounds, and $807,000 for its new multipurpose hall. Far from the denigration the program received from certain quarters, the hall is now used for assemblies, presentations, performing arts, a tuck shop, instrumental tuition, meetings and community occasions. Previously the kids of Caulfield Primary met in the garden or had to take over the library, where all 200 kids could not fit.

The Australian government's Building the Education Revolution, as we know, spent $16.2 billion—the single biggest investment in government schools in Australian history—including $65 million across 36 schools in Melbourne Ports. Across the country, across Melbourne Ports, our students can now use new libraries, science labs, multipurpose halls and above all classrooms. In my electorate, we have a growing population. We have had to have a redistribution, because we have got so many people concertina-ing into the particularly beautiful part of Melbourne where I live. The pressure on classrooms has been well handled in the government, Catholic and independent sectors. I particularly want to praise Caulfield Primary for its Japanese language program, led by Miho Suzuki-Bevan and her dedicated team. The school is one of only 11 bilingual schools in Victoria. It is wonderful to see primary school students at a government school learning a foreign language, in this case Japanese.

When I was at the Japanese school last year, I opened their BER building and cited the importance of education in Japanese culture. This is exemplified by the high ranking adviser to the Nagaoka clan, Torasaburo Kobayashi, in the play One HundredSacks of Rice, by Yuzo Yamamoto: 'The spirit of one hundred sacks of rice'. This is the Japanese attitude to education that I think is seen in both of these schools.

The prosperity of a country, the growth of cities, everything, depends on people. Build schools and develop people of ability. Caulfield Primary's motto, 'Learn, create and participate', embodies this. It is an honour to represent in the federal parliament today such a fine, dedicated, small but passionate school. I want to thank the principal of Caulfield Primary, Peter Gray, and everyone who worked hard to deliver this important project— school staff, parents, tradespeople and the wider community. Their efforts have improved Caulfield Primary School's facilities, as the facilities at all of the schools in Melbourne Ports have been improved. They have been very carefully supervised by their federal member!