Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Hansard source

I was asked a question that went to the issue of educational standards in Western Australia. I was asked a question about the success, as I read it, of the Rudd Labor government in working with the Carpenter government to deliver an education revolution for the people of Western Australia. It is disappointing that Senator Abetz has so little understanding of these issues that he finds he has to raise these spurious points of order. If the senators would be interested to know what the government’s position is on national testing, I am only too happy to provide them with further advice.

If you want to talk about the fundamentals—the fundamentals of ensuring equality of opportunity for all children and the fundamentals of ensuring proper participation in our society—then you must talk about a broader set of issues than just the question of benchmark testing. You must also talk about the opportunities for the breadth of the curriculum which this government is providing. This government is providing these services to the people of Western Australia in partnership with the Labor government of Western Australia. As a consequence, the opportunities that are being developed for children in Western Australia are far superior to anything that was offered through the 12 years of the previous government—a government whose record and whose legacy was one of neglect. And it was a clear case that the Liberal government chose to avoid its responsibilities to ensure that every child in this country had the opportunity to participate fully.