Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

Labor people understand the importance of education. We understand its importance to preserving the Australian ideal of a fair go. We understand its importance to the ongoing strength of the Australian economy because we understand fundamentally this: that to win the economic race we have to win the education race. We know that the Australian economy has completed over two decades of economic growth. We know that the OECD report confirms the resilience of the Australian economy in the context and in the face of global headwinds.

But we also know that we must look to the future and keep working to ensure that our economy remains strong. That is why today we saw the Prime Minister introducing the Australian education bill, incorporating our national plan for school improvement, because we understand that a world-leading education system is central to the ongoing strength and resilience of our economy. In contrast, what do we have from those opposite? Just more negativity. (Time expired)