Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Wright appears to misunderstand what the notion of the Federation white paper is. It is looking holistically at all elements of the Federation. This is not a narrow discussion purely isolated to school funding. It is a discussion looking at education, looking at health and looking at tax and revenue. Senator Wright, I am quite confident that were any agreement to be made with the states that reformed any element of funding, the states would equally expect to have greater security over revenue streams to offset such funding. The government will not be leaving schools worse off, the government will not be leaving school students worse off, and the government will not be leaving public education worse off. We will simply be ensuring that we have a proper discussion with the states that deals properly with how we get the best possible management of our schools into the future.