Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate—

(a) acknowledges that:

  (i) in 2013, the Commonwealth Government recognised that our schools desperately needed to be resourced properly, and signed agreements with the states to provide that much needed funding,

  (ii) the Prime Minister's new education funding plan:

(A) cuts $17 billion from Australian schools,

(B) originally did not include any requirement for any state government to increase their school funding, and

(C) cancels the current New South Wales agreement on schools funding, locking in a lower 2017 level of funding for the next ten years,

  (iii) these cuts mean:

(A) larger class sizes,

(B) fewer specialist teachers for literacy and numeracy,

(C) less support for students with disabilities and behaviour issues, and

(D) reduced training and development for teachers,

(b) calls on the government to commit to the full, original Gonski needs-based funding model, designed to give schools the resources required to deliver high quality education for all students – noting that this model has been a great success for public schools; and

(c) notes the importance of elected representatives listening to their communities, and thanks the concerned parents and citizens who contacted senators to encourage them to:

  (i) take a stand for public education,

  (ii) vote against the Australian Education Amendment Bill 2017, and

  (iii) properly fund the Gonski reforms put in place by the Commonwealth Government in 2013.

Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to move an amendment to the motion currently before the chair.

Leave not granted.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The coalition government is delivering a new schools funding system that boosts investment by $23.4 billion and ensures that every student receives the support they need to reach their full potential. For the first time, every student will get the support they need no matter their background or where they live. That means things like more one-on-one time with teachers and support for new or existing initiatives, such as specialist educators or targeted intervention programs. Our position is to deliver the funding support equality that each student needs. We will never support Labor's corruption of needs based funding.

Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is incredibly unprecedented to see the opposition want to silence people in this place from being able to even move an amendment to their motion. What a bunch of cowards! What an absolute bunch of cowards they are! They know full well that the Labor Party have never implemented or legislated the genuine full Gonski. They had the opportunity to do it in 2013. They squibbed the opportunity. They left schools without certainty for years. And now they deny the leave to be able to do this. We were of course going to move an amendment to this motion to say that the Labor Party failed to implement the genuine full Gonski when they were in power. They've failed again. (Time expired)

Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm actually very confused as to why the Greens won't support this motion. I worked my way through it and it looks like the sort of motion that a greens party might support. It criticises the Prime Minister's funding plan for cutting $17 billion from school education. It calls on the government to implement a full needs based funding model. It notes the importance of elected representatives listening to their communities. I just wonder what exactly it is in this motion that the Greens can't bring themselves to support. Actually what they could do is stand up and tell us the specific provision, but the truth is that we all know the answer. The reason is that Senator Rhiannon supports this position. This is the text that was supported by the inner-city Greens. This is the text that was circulated by Senator Rhiannon, and this is why they can't bring themselves to vote for it.

Question agreed to.