Jacqui Lambie (Tasmania, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I wish to make the following statement in relation to this important piece of legislation. I believe that these measures will be beneficial to students in Australian schools. What has been negotiated with the crossbench over the past few days has led to an increase in funding commitments of almost $5 billion to a total package of $23.6 billion in additional spending. The fact that the Gonski reforms will be implemented as they were intended to much more quickly, over six years rather than 10, is a very good result for students and teachers around Australia. The amendments moved by my colleague Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, which were passed earlier today and which I strongly supported, have now given more accountability and transparency powers to the National School Resourcing Board as well as powers to ensure that educational outcomes can be monitored. These amendments have strengthened my views on the importance of this bill being passed. No bill is perfect, but this package of reforms will deliver significant improvements for the education of our children across the country, including in my home state of Tasmania.

I want to make it clear to my colleagues that I strongly support this bill, I will not be persuaded otherwise and I will not be moving from my position. I have heard everybody out. I have been doing this for months. This has been agenda item No. 1 for my office. There is a lot more that has to be done in our education system—right from the bottom—but this is the best way to do it for this funding and for the way that this model has now been designed. I have total trust in Minister Birmingham following through and making sure that the board and the people he puts on that board do the right thing. I am very grateful that he is putting more people on the board so that there is more diversity. So we have one of two choices here: we can either sit here and keep going all night, or we can do the right thing and let our staff go home. It has been a long week. The game is over. It is now time to get on with it. It is time to look after the future of the kids of this nation.