Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I do not know; Senator Smith could have been there throwing rose petals at his beloved leader. I have no idea, but I would not be surprised. I do not think he would like to throw petals; he would probably like to throw something else at the moment. That is only what I am assuming.

Mr Abbott went on to say that he has learned a lot from Mr Barnett, describing his government as a model he hopes to repeat in Canberra. Well, well, well—here we go. If he wants to model himself on Premier Barnett's government, why don't we look at the $183 million cut from the Western Australian education budget and cut from Western Australian schools?

I have some really interesting figures that I wish to share with the Senate chamber. It just so happens that I grabbed some material on the size of the cuts to schools in the federal electorate of Hasluck, which is represented in the other place by the Liberal member, Mr Ken Wyatt. Darling Range Sports College, the old Forrestfield Senior High School—I know this college very well because I am the patron. I also take kids on World War I Western Front tours and raise a lot of money. It is a darn great school in a very low socioeconomic area not overly endowed with heaps of ratepayers or with the same support from the business community enjoyed by private schools. Everyone must know, however, that, while Mr Abbott is modelling himself on Premier Barnett, that school has had cuts to this year's budget of $379,268. While I am at it, I will go to another high school in the same federal electorate—the Southern River College in Gosnells. They are losing $258,488—I am referring to everyone's interest in Western Australia, Mr Deputy President.