Jan McLucas (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question, to the Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Government Service Delivery, is in regard to the nation-building economic stimulus plan. Is the minister aware that, during the school holidays, it appears work on Building the Education Revolution projects increased? Can the minister provide the Senate with information on the level of activity that happened at our schools during the holiday break? Is the minister also able to outline to the Senate how this vital schools infrastructure is supporting jobs? How is the stimulus generally helping to support employment across the economy, and are there any threats to the jobs that it has sustained?

Mark Arbib (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Government Service Delivery) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator McLucas for the question and also for the work she has undertaken particularly in Far North Queensland and the community of Cairns, where unemployment has reached 14 per cent. The work she has done to create jobs and support the local community should be commended. I am pleased to inform the Senate that, while parliament has been in recess, the builders, the contractors, the tradies and the subcontractors working on Building the Education Revolution projects have been hard at it. As senators would be aware, the program is valued at $16.2 billion—and I remind the Senate that coalition senators voted against it six times.

As at the end of December, only halfway through the school holidays, at the nation’s 8,000 primary schools over 5,000 projects were under construction. That is more than double the figure of only two months ago. What that means is that there are tradespeople on sites, wages getting paid, libraries being built, classrooms being built and science and language centres being built—and Tony Abbott, the member for Warringah, is complaining. Two months ago there were only 33 science and language centres underway, but we now have 503 science and language centres underway—and all the member for Warringah can do is complain. He complains that the government has kept Australia out of recession. He complains about vital school funding—which was so neglected by the Howard government—going directly to school communities. As I travel around the country talking to principals and school communities—(Time expired)

Jan McLucas (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Can the minister further advise the Senate on what feedback has been received from school communities about these school projects, and how these projects will improve learning facilities for Australian students?

Mark Arbib (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Government Service Delivery) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I was talking about some of the feedback I have received from principals and school communities. Heather Harrison, from Hervey Bay, said:

I am not a teacher, but I will have the pleasure of working in one of these soon-to-be-completed school facilities in regional Queensland. After being without a purpose-built library for many years, I now look in awe at the facility we will have, and I still cannot believe it.

The principal of Reidy Park Primary School, Barb Munt, told The Border Watch this week:

We would have had to have lamington drives for that next 100 years to get the money we need to get to do these sorts of things. It is wonderful.

Compare that to the comments made this week by the opposition finance spokesman, Senator Joyce, in relation to Building the Education Revolution. He said:

The rats have got to live somewhere during the Christmas holidays and a hall’s a good enough place for it.

How out of touch is Senator Joyce! (Time expired)

Jan McLucas (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Can the minister further advise the Senate on the progress he has seen going on at the many schools he has visited around Australia? What feedback has the minister received on those projects, and are there other examples of the responses of school communities to the government’s investment in Building the Education Revolution?

Mark Arbib (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Government Service Delivery) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A week ago I was in Perth, and I visited the Westminster State School. There are three classrooms under construction, there are workers and apprentices on site, and money is going into the local economy. The school community is happy and the tradespeople are happy. That is exactly what the stimulus was designed to do. Again, this is an example of the other side being completely out of touch with what is going on in the economy, what has been happening with the global financial crisis, and the gains from the projects. I go back to Senator Joyce, who said on 12 December:

Well I think the whole ... stimulus package was not warranted ... I think the stimulus package was inappropriate

That means schools, school halls, school classrooms, school libraries—(Time expired)