Fatima Payman (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

In the two minutes I have, I rise to include my reflections on the matter of urgency before the Senate, put by Senator McKim, on public school funding. This morning I had the privilege of meeting with members of the Australian Education Union, school teachers and students from Western Australia. Their stories are a stark reminder of what's at stake in our public education system. They spoke of classrooms bursting at the seams. They spoke of students with disabilities and special needs not receiving the care and attention they require. They spoke of outdated resources, high staff turnover and teachers stretched thin, desperately trying to give every child the education they deserve.

What have we seen from this Labor government? A glaring failure to fully fund our public schools. Instead, they continue to funnel record amounts of money into private schools. This is not just a matter of budgetary allocation; it's a question of values and priorities. By neglecting public schools we are condemning another generation of Australian kids to an underfunded education. We are telling them that their futures matter less because of the postcode they were born in. This is unacceptable.

Education is the great equaliser, but only if it is adequately funded. It's time we stopped paying lip service to the importance of public education and started giving it the resources it needs to truly thrive. We need to bridge the jarring equity divide. I urge my colleagues to support this motion and send a clear message: every child, regardless of their background, their postcode or their parents' income, deserves a fully funded high-quality education. Let us not fail them.