Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise in support of the hardworking member for Robertson's motion regarding the commitment of the Albanese government to better and fairer education for all Australians. Education is the foundation for building a better life for every Australian. It enables both individuals and societies to thrive—from the early years at kindergarten through to primary and secondary school and then on to TAFE or uni. Education is the pathway to prosperity, dignity, purpose and wellbeing. Good education creates a smarter and more equitable nation. Therefore, all Australians need equal access and opportunities to education. It should never be about your credit card; it should never be about the haves and the have-nots. The drive for better and fairer education is close to my heart, and I say that as the proud dad of a high schooler in year 10—Leo, I hope you're having a good day and not listening to this on your phone—and a uni student, and in a former life I was an English teacher. I worked in both state and independent schools for 11 years in Queensland. From both sides of the fence, I can vouch for the importance of teaching and how it can change lives.

I'd like to thank all of the teachers and their support staff in the 49 schools across my electorate of Moreton for their dedication and commitment. And I think I can speak for all MPs when I say that all MPs in this country appreciate the effort of our teachers and their support staff. I'd like to congratulate the Minister for Education for the progress he's made since May 2022. We've got a lot of work to do, obviously; there's been a bit of a mess left behind by the former coalition government.

One of the things that we really need to do is fix that teacher shortage. Obviously, that didn't start when Labor took office. To provide equal access to education, we need to urgently address the questions of why too few people are choosing teaching and why too many trained staff are leaving the profession—some after only two or three years. The National Teacher Workforce Action Plan is focusing on direct and measurable actions, like the $30 billion to establish the teacher Workload Reduction Fund and the $10 million for improved professional development opportunities. We're bolstering the number of teachers with 4,000 additional places in teaching degrees and $56 million for Commonwealth Teaching Scholarships. These scholarships will attract more high achievers to the profession. I note that over 3,000 applications have already been received. To ensure ongoing equal access, the scholarship priority groups include First Nations peoples; people from rural, regional and remote areas, because the Labor Party will always look after the bush; and also people with disability.

Another focus of the Albanese government is on school infrastructure. The $275 million first phase of the Schools Upgrade Fund will provide facilities, upgrade IT equipment and develop outdoor learning spaces across over 1,500 schools. Round 2 provides $215 million for public schools to take on large projects, such as new facilities. I'm proud that the funding will be prioritised for schools with high numbers of students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, First Nations students and students with a disability. This is a capital injection version of needs based funding.

Labor is also negotiating the next National School Reform Agreement this year. We're committed to lifting every school to 100 per cent of their fair funding level. Contrast this to the schools agreement which was signed by the coalition government under the member for Cook. Under that agreement, students from disadvantaged backgrounds were found to be three times more likely to fall behind, and 86,000 students didn't meet either the basic literacy standard or the numeracy standard. Sensible governments ensure that students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, are not left behind.

The review to inform a better and fairer education system was published in December last year and provided guidance on key reforms related to equity, wellbeing and teacher workforce. The negotiations for the National School Reform Agreement will tie funding to reform and will lead to measures that result in a better and fairer education and in closing that education gap.

I want to finish with a quick word about the importance of student wellbeing. The Albanese Labor government has put over $203 million towards the Student Wellbeing Boost program. Last week, I hosted a roundtable on loneliness, especially loneliness amongst 18- to 25-year-olds, with the member for Boothby and the member for Hunter. Supporting the mental health and wellbeing of school students can only improve outcomes as they transition to vocational education or uni.

Education remains the great transformational opportunity. Minister Clare feels this in his bones, and he's rolling out policies to make it so—from the Torres Strait to Tasmania, from Carnarvon to Coolangatta and everywhere in between. There are no quick fixes to the challenges in the education sector, but Minister Clare is kicking things along nicely.

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Once again, what we're seeing from the Labor Party is a lot of talk, a lot of reviews and a lot of hot air. When it comes to actually doing anything—nothing! Absolutely nothing.

The one thing about this motion that stands out more than anything else is this: what about educational outcomes? What about making sure that, when it comes to kids who are at school, the focus is going to be on ensuring that they can read, write and add up at the end of their schooling? There is nothing about this. What we need to be doing is focusing on ensuring that everything we're doing is student centred. It's about getting better outcomes for students. It's not just about governments talking about 'we're doing this' or 'we're doing that'. There is nothing here in this motion which says, 'What we want to do is improve the educational outcomes of our students.'

Look at what the government is doing in the childcare sector. It's all talk. Come to my community. Go to the member for Grey's community. Go to Tasmania. People can't get access to child care.

Where's the solution? Where's the talk about trying to do that? It's nowhere in this motion. Where are the outcomes when it comes to improving the pipeline of teachers for our schools? We need more teachers. We need better qualified teachers. We need teachers who can go out into the regions and out into remote Australia, and can deliver the types of outcomes that we want for our students. There's nothing there. Then we get to higher education. We've just seen this higher education review announced. There are no extra dollars—not a cent. But, even more importantly, where's the focus on getting better outcomes in the sectors that we need to grow our economy going forward?

What are the growth areas in employment going forward for this nation? Health care, science and technology, education and construction—these four industries are projected to provide 62 per cent of total employment growth over the next five years. What did the coalition do to try to help and support these sectors going forward? We cut the price that any student who goes into these areas has to pay for their degree. That means discounted fees for teaching, for nursing, for clinical psychology, for English and languages, for agriculture, for maths, for science, for health, for architecture, for environmental science, for IT and for engineering. What we did was cut the cost of the student's degree in any of those areas because they are the growth areas. They're the areas that we want to encourage students to go into because that's where the jobs of the future are going to be. I say to those opposite: I look forward to you contemplating increasing the cost of those degrees in those areas again because you will be howled down. We had the courage to say, 'These are the areas that we want students to go into, and we're going to cut the price of their degrees.'

What I say to the government is: you should be very transparent about the cost of degrees, you should be very transparent about where the future needs of our economy are and you should be ensuring that you're publicising the fact that, if you're a young student and you're leaving school at the moment, these are the areas we are encouraging you to go into because these are the areas where future employment growth will be. Instead, what are we hearing from those opposite? We hear crickets. They don't want to own up to the fact that what we did when we were in government was say to anyone who wants to go in those areas, 'We will cut the cost of your degree.' That is good, sensible policymaking. It's going to be very interesting to see what happens because the minister said, 'I don't like the Job-ready Graduates project.' Well, you come in and increase degrees in those areas then.

Matt Burnell (Spence, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Perhaps I shouldn't be taking Pink Floyd quite so literally, but, to disagree with the legends themselves, we do in fact need education. I thank the member for Robertson for moving this motion on such an important issue, one that forms a cornerstone amongst the bedrock of many facets of public policy, with policies aimed at not just levelling the playing field across all forms of education but equipping Australians of all ages and all abilities with the building blocks needed to build themselves up while they work towards playing their part in building an Australia for the future, one that we can all be proud of.

Education starts at early childhood and continues onward on a journey that doesn't necessarily have a use-by date. Education is, after all, a lifelong journey—an extremely rich and rewarding one. As such, this motion also provides me with ample opportunity to speak to the impacts that both the presence and absence of a world-class education system can mean for the Australia of today and the Australia of tomorrow. Having the opportunity to obtain a quality education is often one of life's great equalisers.

But, as so often is the case, that is contingent on every child—every student—having equal access to a quality education. For many, this simply does not eventuate. Oftentimes, the disparity between the haves and the have-nots can frankly be quite confronting. These impacts can be felt in the immediate term but have knock-on effects in the longer term, too. In early September last year, I made remarks in this place in support of legislation that would implement a number of reforms from the Australian Universities Accord interim report. I spoke of the need for a number of these reforms to flow to my electorate of Spence. Since reading the interim report, I have continued to been a vocal advocate for the establishment of a tertiary hub within my electorate.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to start reading through the final report of the Australian Universities Accord. I felt it poignant to discuss a few aspects of the report along with higher and vocational education and training. Jobs and Skills Australia anticipates that, over the next decade, more than 90 per cent of new jobs will require post-school qualifications, with 50 per cent requiring a bachelor's degree or higher. The report notes that a failure to increase student numbers to meet these needs could do lasting damage to Australia's prospects for national economic success.

The OECD defines tertiary education as being at a level 'higher than diploma'; 16½ per cent of Spence have attained an education of that level. For a bachelor's degree or higher, that number sinks to 9.5 per cent. This is supplemented by the nearly 40 per cent who have obtained a VET qualification. One of the big contributors to this number is Elizabeth TAFE—an institution whose students and educators I was extremely proud to visit alongside the Minister for Skills and Training some time ago. But those are starkly contrasted by the numbers in the bottom end of the nation when it comes to tertiary education.

A university education is not something everyone must have immediately after high school. Education is not a linear journey nor a timed one. But having the right settings in place across all forms of education to give everyone the best chance of obtaining such an education for the future does have a clock ticking above it. These numbers do not occur as a coincidence or in a vacuum. We must act to reduce barriers to entry and mitigate a number of entrenched disadvantages experienced by many of those who aspire to study at university. That is an aspirational class I can certainly get behind.

Education is as valuable to society as it is to the individual. It is transformative to the lives of those who have the support necessary to overcome challenges that would prevent their willingness and ability to study and reach their full potential. I'm especially proud to be part of a government that supports education, whether that be by addressing teacher shortages through the National Teacher Workforce Action Plan—a comprehensive strategy designed to attract and retain educators—by using the Schools Upgrade Fund to build educational infrastructure and environments where students can thrive or by working with state and territory education ministers to reduce the school funding equity gap as part of the National School Reform Agreement being negotiated this year. Filling that gap will help thousands of children in my electorate realise potential they may not have known existed.

With 35,000 students in Spence, particularly those 25,000 from public schools, I can think of thousands of reasons to get this right. To my old teachers Mr Fitzgibbon, from when I was at primary school, and Mr Blue, from when I was at senior college, thank you very much for the knowledge that you imparted on me to allow me to get to this place. I really appreciate it. Thank you.

Sophie Scamps (Mackellar, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the motion presented to this House by my colleague the member for Robertson. I too would like to thank all my teachers and teachers everywhere for the hard work they do, their dedication and their commitment. There are two aspects to this motion today that I would particularly like to address. They are the focus on building a better and fairer education system and the need to work with state and territory governments to get all schools on a path to full and fair funding.

In these two respects, this motion is very timely. Just last week, the Australian Education Union released a report setting out a comparison on capital spending in the public and private school sectors. Capital spending in the schools context means school infrastructure—halls, theatres, toilets, new buildings, new roofs. But, before I talk about the results of this report, I'd like to relay an experience of one of my own schools in my electorate of Mackellar. Last year, I was invited by the P&C to visit a school just a stone's throw from my office. Before I say anything, I have to say that it is a most wonderful school. They have dedicated staff, they have beautiful, terrific students who are aspiring to achieve in their chosen fields and they have a committed P&C association doing what they can to support this school. It is a wonderful, vibrant school community. But what I saw that day nearly brought me to tears, because the infrastructure was in such a state of disrepair and neglect that it was almost Third World. There was mould everywhere—ceilings, walls, floors. Toilet doors were off their hinges. Roofs were leaking. Bunsen burners had to be turned off because they leaked gas in chemistry classrooms. It was appalling, and I was horrified.

This is in stark contrast to what is happening in the private school sector. In 2021, one prestigious Sydney boys school spent $63.5 million on fitness and drama facilities, which is absolutely wonderful for that school and those children, but it equated to more than the entire Northern Territory and Tasmanian governments' combined spending on new and upgraded infrastructure in public schools that same year.

The other key part of the school funding picture is what is called the schooling resource standard, or SRS. The SRS is an estimate of how much total public funding a school needs to meet its students' educational needs. It's based on the recommendations that were made in the 2011 Gonski Review of Funding for Schooling, which, as most people are aware, was never fully implemented. Only 1.3 per cent of public schools are fully funded under the SRS model. Really, this is a scandal. What it means is that, if we exclude territories for a moment, no student in an Australian public school has the funding necessary to meet their educational needs.

Private schools, yes, are mostly privately funded through school fees and contributions, but they are also topped up by taxpayer money. This takes me back to the Australian Education Union report released last week on capital spending in our schools. It found that, in 2021, the amount of money spent by five elite private schools on capital works was the same amount of money that the government gave to more than half of all Australia's public schools, and, in the decade to 2021, the annual average spend on capital works per private school student was more than double what was spent on public school students. In numbers, that equates to $31 billion more being spent on private students than public students over a decade.

Non-government schools have been allocated $1.25 billion since 2017 in Commonwealth funds as part of a capital grants program. If this scheme remains in place, private schools will get almost another $1 billion in capital funding from the federal government over the next four years. In contrast, all the other state schools, except for in WA and the Northern Territory, will need to share a pot of $216 million for their building infrastructure program. That's 6,700 public schools that need to share that pot.

In summary, I will welcome the government's commitment to ensuring that in this term all schools will achieve 100 per cent of the schooling resource standard to help close this—

Ross Vasta (Bonner, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The question is that the motion be agreed to, and I call the honourable member for Reid.

Sally Sitou (Reid, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Of all the many moments that stood out after the 2022 election, there was one that stood out in particular—one that signified what the change of government really meant for Australia. The new Minister for Education, Jason Clare, returned to his primary school in south-west Sydney to visit his former primary school teacher, Cathy Fry. It was clearly an emotional moment for Mrs Fry and for Minister Clare, and, watching that video, it was an emotional moment for me too.

Like Minister Clare, I grew up in south-west Sydney. I too got a good education at public schools: Canley Vale Public School and Sefton High School. I was taught by dedicated teachers who extended my lessons beyond the textbooks. They made me curious about the world and made me think about my role in society. In Minister Clare, and the Minister for Early Childhood Education and Minister for Youth, Anne Aly, we have two fierce advocates of the benefits of education at every stage of development. Former prime minister Paul Keating said, 'Education provides the keys to the kingdom.' It was true when he made that statement more than three decades ago and it will be even more true in the future. Consider this. Over the next 10 years, more than nine out of 10 new jobs expected to be created will require post-secondary qualifications. For the individual, for our society and for our economy, education is the key to unlocking this nation's potential.

We on this side of the House understand this. But understanding that isn't enough. We need vision, we need heart and we also need a plan. This government has been implementing reforms to create the better education systems that we all need. For the first time, we have a federal government that recognises the importance of education throughout someone's life, including the critical education that happens soon after birth. We have made early education more affordable. It was a key commitment in the 2022 election and it's making a difference, with an 11 per cent average reduction in out-of-pocket expenses. If the Albanese Labor government hadn't implemented this change, out-of-pocket costs for families would have increased by an average of six per cent.

Anyone who has a child in child care will tell you how incredible early childhood educators are. This is a government that is supporting them. We are providing early educators with the ability to negotiate for higher wages through multi-enterprise bargaining. We're also encouraging more people to choose a career in early education by providing fee-free TAFE courses.

As I have been meeting with teachers and principals at primary schools and high schools throughout my electorate, the key concern they have is around teacher shortage. As an example of how bad it got in 2022, in one week in one school in my electorate there were 43 classes that did haven't a dedicated teacher. That was 43 classes where students didn't get the education they needed. Things have improved since then, but teacher shortages remain for so many schools across the country. It's a problem that has been decades in the making. We are working to address it through our National Teacher Workforce Action Plan, aimed at enhancing the recruitment and retention of teachers as well as education quality. We're investing in additional university education places, a teacher workload reduction fund, professional development enhancements and scholarships aimed at encouraging diverse, high-achieving individuals into the teaching profession.

This week we got the final Universities Accord report, which sets out a road map over the next decade for how we can open up more opportunities for more people to get a tertiary qualification. The Minister for Education, Jason Clare, wants to see more Indigenous students, students from the bush and students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds succeed in this country. He knows the only way to do that is to ensure we reform our education system. It's a task I'm proud to support.

Angie Bell (Moncrieff, Liberal National Party, Shadow Minister for Early Childhood Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I really don't think there has been a government as full of itself as this Albanese Labor government. They love big, sweeping statements. They tell mistruths and they claim credit for simply everything. Like the member for Robertson today, I want to talk about two of these claims. The first is that their government are making a fairer education system from early childhood education right through to university. Sure, that might be so if you live in a metro area. But I've been travelling the country and speaking with families in regional and rural areas. As my colleagues here in the chamber—the member for Braddon and the member for Grey—can attest, rural and remote communities basically are not getting what they need. There is nothing fair about how this government is treating those communities. Does the member opposite think that it's fair that the rural community of Kingston SE are still waiting for the $1.8 million that Labor promised them before the 2022 federal election for their early learning centre? Does he think that's fair? Does the member think that it's fair that in Tumby Bay there is no access to ECE for families and many mothers cannot even return to work? Does the member think that it's fair that families in the electorate of Casey are waiting years before they can get their children into early learning, with 15 children for every place? Does the member think that it's fair that in the great electorates of Mallee and Grey there are childcare deserts as far as the eye can see and yet this government is doing nothing for those communities—nothing for those communities in Grey, nothing for those communities in Braddon and nothing for those communities in Casey, just to name a few? I'm sure that, if the member for Robertson took a look at his own backyard, his own electorate, he'd find that there are families struggling to access care and those families are languishing on long waitlists. They simply can't go back to work. Members opposite, tell me exactly what is fair about that.

Why is it that this government always leaves the regions behind? Why do they do that? I've sat at roundtables with parents in tears. They're concerned about the rising cost of living under this government and they can't return to work, because there are no childcare centres in their area or, if there are, they're a 40-kilometre trek away and they're stuck on a waiting list. I've spoken to firefighters, nurses and teachers who cannot go back to work amidst staffing shortages, because there's nowhere for their children to go under this government. How is that fair?

Finally, when these children make it to school, they're developmentally behind their peers because, due to where they live, they haven't had the same level of access. This government has the gall to stand here and talk about how families are better off under them. Go to the regions and say that. Visit Tumby Bay. Visit Ardrossan. Visit the South Australian regions that are missing out and tell those families that it's fair.

You say a family that has access to a place is one of the lucky ones, and yet, on 1 July 2023, those families watched their increased subsidy be eaten away by higher fees from their provider. But the government says that's not true. They say that families are better off. I've spoken to many who simply aren't. They are families who watched their fees increase by 15 to 20 per cent and couldn't do anything about it, because there were no other places available for their children in nearby centres. Even data from The Parenthood shows that 90 per cent of parents watched their fees increase on 1 July, and this government has done nothing about it. They threw billions of taxpayer dollars into the inflation dumpster fire and then they walked away. They simply set it and forgot it.

Out-of-pocket costs are already creeping back up 3.5 per cent, according to the December quarter CPI, and fees will continue to increase because centres also need to pay for the rising costs of electricity, the rising costs of gas, the rising costs of groceries and all other items that continue to rise because of the reckless spending of this Labor government—a government that can't protect the borders, a government that can't protect our community, a government that has let the economy spiral out of control because they don't understand that, the more you spend, the higher inflation soars.

It's clear the Albanese government has no idea what they're doing. They're falling over themselves, trying to cover all their mistakes, which are quite a list for only 18 months in government, saying that there's nothing to see here. Australian families deserve better than this reckless Labor government.

Cassandra Fernando (Holt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am honoured to stand before you to speak in support of this motion and highlight the remarkable achievements of the Albanese Labor government in advancing education in our great nation. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Minister for Education Jason Clare, the government has made significant strides in creating a better and fairer education system for all Australians. The electorate of Holt is one of the youngest in the nation. Over one in every four in my electorate is under the age of 14, the highest in this country. As a representative of such a young electorate, I welcome the government's plan to revitalise our teacher workforce through the National Teacher Workforce Action Plan.

In recognising the shortage of teachers across the country, this government has taken action to attract and retain the best talent in the education sector. Through targeted investments, the Albanese government is empowering passionate individuals to pursue careers in teaching, thereby ensuring a bright future for generations to come. The plan includes funding 4,000 additional university places in education, establishing a teacher workload reduction fund to reduce burnout, improving the professional development of teachers and increasing Commonwealth Teaching Scholarships. These reforms will help teachers across the country—like my sister-in-law Christine, a primary schoolteacher in the neighbouring electorate of La Trobe.

Labor's commitment to primary and secondary education extends beyond just the people involved. We understand the space where children learn plays a crucial role in shaping student success. This is why Labor is investing over $275 million through the Schools Upgrade Fund to enhance school facilities and prioritise student safety. From improving ventilation to building outdoor learning spaces, this government is creating nurturing environments where students can thrive academically and socially.

The pandemic was tough on our kids, who spent many of their vital years of growth separated from their peers. Through initiatives such as the Student Wellbeing Boost, the government has allocated over $200 million to support mental health and resilience in schools. This funding has enabled schools to provide crucial resources and interventions to support students during these challenging times, ensuring that no child is left behind.

The government is also committed to achieving full and fair funding for all schools for the first time in a decade. Currently, no school outside of the ACT is fully funded. Students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, were being left behind under the previous coalition government's schools agreement. Under their plan, students from disadvantaged backgrounds—like many in my electorate—were found to be three times more likely to fall behind, and 86,000 students didn't meet either the basic literacy or numeracy standards. By working together with states and territories through the National School Reform Agreement the government has ensured that every child has access to high quality education.

The Albanese government has also shown an unwavering commitment to shaping the higher education system to meet the needs of the future. Yesterday marked a momentous occasion for the future of Australian higher education, with the release of the Australian Universities Accord final report by Minister Clare. The release of the report will pave the way for a more inclusive and equitable higher education landscape. The Albanese Labor government's investment in education is a testament to its unwavering commitment to build a brighter future for all Australians. Through bold initiatives and collaborative efforts, we are creating a better and fairer education system that empowers every individual to reach their full potential. As we continue to build an education system designed for the 21st century, let us reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that education remains the cornerstone of our nation's prosperity.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Shadow Minister for International Development and the Pacific) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The shadow minister for early childhood education and youth certainly summed it up when she talked about the failures of Labor on this particular issue. Education is so important. It is the great enabler, particularly for our young people, and Labor has let them down on their watch.

At the moment we have got record HECS debt. It went up seven per cent, indexed from the end of June last year. These young people are getting into the workforce. Yes, it's the best loan you can ever take, but when you combine it with the cost-of-living crisis it is so difficult for these young people. Housing affordability is going to be so much more difficult for them than for, you could perhaps argue, previous generations. The shadow minister referred to there being a childcare desert in regional areas, and she is so correct. Labor talks a big game about the affordability of child care, but it is availability in regional areas that is the crisis point. They can't find a childcare placement. I know we have listened to the health minister recently talking about how, if you can't find a bulk-billing doctor, then you should just jump on the phone and take the next available one. That could be hundreds of kilometres away for somebody who lives in a remote area or, dare I say it, a rural or regional area. And it's the same with child carers. The member for Mallee knows what I'm talking about all too well. She's all too well aware of what I'm talking about when it comes to childcare availability—not necessarily affordability but availability.

Under Labor we've seen savage cuts of up to $102 million to university research programs, programs that have meant such a difference. I know in my electorate, where agricultural excellence is promoted and pushed by Charles Sturt University, we can't afford to be cutting research programs. We should be doing more in the space of R&D. On the abolition under Labor of the 50 per cent pass rule, which safeguarded students from incurring debt, the question is: why has this taken place? There's now a start-up loan scheme for courses that were previously free, a student support scheme that delivers no substantive support. These things have happened on Labor's watch. There are declining standards with no solution in sight. And there was a very interesting article, promoted by both the ABC and the Guardian just the other day, in relation to the fact that up to a third of Australian children cannot read properly as teaching methods cause preventable tragedy. That was the Grattan Institute.

You talk to teachers, and they're overwhelmed by the work that they have to do. They have to be all things to all children these days. I take my hat off to our teachers. They work very hard, and they put the kids' welfare first and foremost, as they should. When only 12 per cent of Australian 15-year-olds are able to read at an advanced level, with children from poor families 10 times more likely to have deficient reading ability compared to their richer peers, you have to ask yourself: where is our country headed? Reading is of such critical importance. It doesn't matter what occupation those kids will be doing in the future. It doesn't matter whether they become an astrophysicist or if they work in manual labour, they need to be able to read and write. Under this Labor government, reading and writing standards have, sadly, slipped.

Labor, of course will point the finger. As so many of them do when they get their talking points, they just read them straight from the piece of paper that they've been handed. The fact remains we need to be looking after our children better. We need to be able to make sure that those educational standards are better. Indeed, the HECS debts are only going to increase with the inflationary crisis that we've got under Labor's watch. We've got the cost-of-living crisis under Labor's watch. We have a lack of childcare placements under Labor's watch. Fees have increased. Out-of-pockets costs have skyrocketed, and no additional places have been created for families when it comes to child care.

The education minister talks a big game on the National School Reform Agreement, but so far there's been no national agreement and no school reforms. What's the education minister doing? What's Labor doing? Life is much more costly and much harder under this government.

Alicia Payne (Canberra, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm proud to rise to speak on this important motion brought before the House today by my colleague the member for Robertson. The motion acknowledges the strong commitment of the Albanese Labor government, led by the Minister for Education, to a fair and equitable education system from early childhood education right through to the tertiary sector. This motion comes to the House at a very timely moment, as last week we saw the handing down of the final report of the Australian Universities Accord Panel.

I want to congratulate the panel on their work, which lays out a comprehensive and detailed path to get our university sector back on track after a decade of coalition neglect. It outlines how the sector can better serve our nation, its staff and, most importantly, its students. It shows us how we can increase equity when it comes to higher education access for disadvantaged young Australians. It provides us with a vision for tertiary education long into the future. It is optimistic and it is ambitious.

The government will now consider the 47 recommendations as we create a long-term plan for reform in order to meet Australia's future skills needs. In the meantime, the government is implementing the priority actions of the accord's interim report, which delivers an additional 20 new regional universities study hubs.

Ross Vasta (Bonner, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! I thank the honourable member. The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned, and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.