Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd like to follow up on the comments by the member for Wright a few minutes ago about the report in the AFR today about the abuse that principals receive on a daily basis. I know this firsthand from recently meeting with a number of my school principals. Equally, the teachers cop that in the classroom from the kids and at times also from the parents. As the member for Wright has quite rightly said: 'Enough is enough and it's got to stop.' I had the instance in a discussion with a school principal the other day where this school principal had to suspend a child in grade 2 for vaping, and the abuse that this principal copped from the parents about suspending the child was just outrageous, and completely and utterly uncalled for.

I want to take this opportunity to say thank you to the principals, thank you to the teachers and thank you to the administration staff at our schools for the outstanding job that they do each and every day in educating the next generation of Australians. All of us in this place stand here because of the value of education, and the work and effort and time the principals, teachers and administration staff at our schools were prepared to put into us. We see that each and every day at every school across my electorate and right across the country, so I want to say to all of those thank you very much for your efforts. They're greatly appreciated.