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

I am aware that those opposite seem to not have the courage to do what all the members of the crossbench have done, which is sensibly engage in relation to this debate. All the members of the crossbench have been willing to have proper discussions and engagements, recognising that there are real benefits and merits to this reform, that building a proper school funding model for the future is the right thing to do, that the Turnbull government has rescued the Gonski report from the corruption of those opposite and that in doing so we are putting in place true needs based funding for the future.

Those opposite seem to want to cling onto $22 billion they claim of funny money—money that they do not know how they will get, that they spend multiple times over, that in their case is purely about putting in place different deals to buy off different groups rather than the principled, consistent approach the Turnbull government is taking.