George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Minister for the Arts and Sport) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable senator for her question and acknowledge her longstanding and deep commitment to the interests of the people in Western Sydney. As you would know, Mr President, Senator Payne has maintained her electorate office in Parramatta throughout her entire Senate career. There are few greater champions for Western Sydney in the Howard government. In July’s COAG meeting last year, the Prime Minister announced that the Australian government would provide 200 new medical school places as well as increased funding for Australia’s medical schools, subject to matching capital funding from the states. The governments of Queensland and of Victoria were swift to provide the matching capital funding, but, alas, I have to inform Senator Payne that the situation was otherwise with the government of New South Wales.

The Australian government committed to providing 80 new medical training places for the University of New England and the University of Newcastle and to establish a medical school at UNE which is to have a strong focus on rural medical practice. The Australian government also pledged $3 million in capital funding for the new medical school, subject to matching funding from the New South Wales government. Regional New South Wales has been waiting ever since for Mr Iemma to deliver on that commitment. His refusal to provide the matching funding was putting at risk the medical school opening its doors next year. But the Australian government will not let the dithering of Mr Iemma put at risk the health of the people of regional New South Wales. The Australian government would wait no longer for Mr Iemma and we have released our funding for the capital works and for the medical school places.

Senator Payne also asked about Western Sydney, where the Australian government has provided some $3.5 million to develop nursing development hubs at the Campbelltown and Parramatta campuses of the University of Western Sydney. As honourable senators may be aware, the University of Western Sydney has the largest undergraduate pre-registration nursing program in Australia. These new nursing development hubs include clinical teaching laboratories, simulation and virtual teaching facilities as well as training wards and clinical units. The Australian government has also provided $25 million in capital funding for the new University of Western Sydney medical school along with similar funding for student places. This brings the Australian government’s contribution to the medical school in Western Sydney to around $50 million.

The University of Western Sydney is the same university that was ripped off by the New South Wales state government in 2005 by almost $11.3 million in payroll tax—payroll tax that, I should say, ought no longer to be levied following the COAG agreement in relation to the GST some years ago. Ripped off by $11.3 million! I wonder whether honourable senators know how much the New South Wales state government provided to the University of Western Sydney in that year, 2005. It was $109,000. Mr Iemma’s Labor government is ripping almost $100 million more out of New South Wales universities through payroll tax than it is providing them with in financial assistance. And that is on top of the $11 billion New South Wales is receiving from GST revenue.