Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today in favour of the Australian Education Amendment (Save Our Public Schools) Bill 2023. This bill would replace the so-called cap on the Commonwealth's share of public school funding with a floor. This would mean the education minister must commit 25 per cent as a minimum towards the bilateral funding agreements with states and territories.

For too long public schools have fallen through the cracks, with neither the states nor the federal government interested in, or capable of, delivering 100 per cent schooling resource standard funding. Let's be very clear about what the schooling resource standard is: it's the absolute bare minimum of funding. The SRS is only designed to get 80 per cent of students across the line; we're not reaching for the stars here. This bill would also introduce an obligation on the education minister to ensure that every school-aged child in Australia has access to a fully funded government school. It's common sense. The community expects the education minister to ensure every child gets the education they deserve, and our bill makes this his job.

I've brought this bill into the parliament today because we can't wait a moment longer. Teachers, students, parents and carers can't wait a moment longer. Today, the Australian Education Union, the Australian Council of State School Organisations, the Australian Government Primary Principal Association, the Australian Secondary Principals Association, the Australian Special Education Principals Association, the Australian Primary Principals Association and the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Principals Association have come together to demand that the Prime Minister fulfil his election promise to end the underfunding crisis and deliver 100 per cent of funding to public schools. And that starts by lifting the Commonwealth contribution to a minimum of 25 per cent. That's what this bill does today. Labor could answer these cries and pass this bill right now. Labor could commit to 25 per cent. Labor could commit to ending the tax depreciation rort exploited by the states. Labor could commit to the first step in ending this crisis. Governments like to pretend this stuff is hard, but it's actually quite simple: increase the funding share of the Commonwealth to at least 25 per cent and close the accounting loophole that lets states contribute less than their full commitment. The legislated 20 per cent cap is a coalition relic which lets Labor off the hook. It's clear that many states and territories are unable, or unwilling, to meet their funding obligations. But, with this so-called cap in place, the federal government can simply shrug its shoulders.

We have seen a decade of decay and rot set into our public schools. We have seen story after story of what this rot has done to education. Buildings are falling apart and riddled with mould. Teachers are working incredibly long days and digging into their own pockets to pay for classroom basics. There are unprecedented levels of workload intensification and stress. Kids are prevented from attending field trips and excursions because neither parents nor the schools can afford it.

We are at a critical juncture. Do we continue down this pathway, continuing to watch our public schools limp along, with millions of kids left behind? Public education should be the bedrock of a healthy and vibrant democracy. Quality education is a launch pad for so many terrific and wonderful things. It opens doors. It envelops kids in a community and allows them to experiment with their interests. For this reason, every single child in this wealthy country should be afforded access to a free and high-quality education. Yet, time and time again, we've seen Labor and the coalition fail to show up for our kids.

It's no secret what's happening—98 per cent of public schools in the country are underfunded. Every year, public schoolkids are robbed of $6.6 billion. That means schools don't have the money to pay for the bare minimum level of staffing and educational resources that they need. Under existing funding arrangements, the federal government meets its 20 per cent commitment, but most states and territories are not paying their 80 per cent share and, on current trajectories, they never will. We have an absurd situation where the federal government, with vastly more revenue than the states and territories, is chiefly responsible for subsidising the overfunded private sector.

What we've seen over the last few weeks in Western Australia is that pressure works. Pressure from the Greens, the unions, teachers, parents and carers is working. Without this pressure, it's hard to imagine this government lifting its finger on school funding. But we must be crystal clear. Labor's deal with the WA government is not a deal for full funding. It is not even a deal for minimum funding. This is a deal that locks in underfunding until 2029 for 300,000 WA schoolkids. Accounting trickery introduced under the Morrison government means states and territories are able to claim four per cent in non-school costs as part of their contribution to public school funding. That means that, even if this statement of intent produces actual reforms, the WA school system will receive only 96 per cent of its bare minimum of funding. Labor need to be honest and transparent with parents, carers and teachers, and they need to close this loophole in the next round of bilateral agreements.

Labor is in power federally and in every mainland state and territory. This is an historically rare opportunity to end a decade of broken pledges and false dawns and deliver on the promise of Gonski once and for all. The Labor government know that they must act on the funding of public schools or join the long list of failed school reformers who came before them.

With the review to inform a better and fairer education system recommending 10-year funding agreements, delivering full SRS funding at the start of the next agreement is critical. Otherwise, public schools around the country will struggle through another wasted decade. Labor's capitulation on Gonski locked in a decade of underfunding for public schools and overfunding of private schools. We are now at crisis point. If Labor once again fumble the ball and fail to deliver the funding that public schools desperately need, then they will need to answer to 276 million public school students, their parents, carers and teachers. Public schools have waited long enough for 100 per cent SOS funding, and this bill will help get it done.

Sarah Henderson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Australian Education Amendment (Save Our Public Schools) Bill 2023. I want to start by saying that under the former coalition government we dramatically lifted schools funding from $13 billion in 2013 to a very significant $25 billion in 2022 and largely resolved the so-called funding wars over schools. It is regrettable that we have seen these funding wars erupt.

While I appreciate the Greens' position, this is very much a situation of the minister's own making. The Minister for Education, Jason Clare, committed to full and fair funding for public schools. The problem with that commitment is that the Commonwealth is already providing 20 per cent of funding to Australian public schools in accordance with the Gonski funding model. So there is no shortfall of funding from the Commonwealth to public schools whatsoever. And it is correct, as Senator Allman-Payne has just said, that the states are falling very dramatically short in their funding contributions. The Northern Territory is sitting at only 59 per cent of its funding contribution out of 80 per cent. Queensland is 69 per cent. Victoria is 70 per cent. Only the ACT, in fact, has committed and delivered its full funding obligations under the Gonski model.

Mr Clare went to the election promising full and fair funding from the Albanese government. This government has now created a funding shambles. We now know that this is another broken promise. The states, quite rightly, interpreted this commitment as the government delivering its increasing share from 20 per cent to 25 per cent. Mr Clare and the Albanese government have led Australian parents, Australian families, Australian students and Australian teachers up the garden path. We've now seen a funding shambles erupt on the minister's watch. There have been big headlines: '$3 billion for public schools', with an offer to take Commonwealth public school funding from 20 per cent to 22.5 per cent. Firstly, implicitly, that is a blatant broken promise. Secondly, within 24 hours five states said to this incompetent minister, who's had nearly two years to sort this out, 'no deal'. We know that this minister was rolled by the states and territories at the last education ministers' meeting in December. He put forward some reforms which he clearly had not done his homework on, and he was comprehensively rolled.

Now we have a situation where we have an absolute shambles on our hands created by this incompetent government. So I say: shame on Minister Clare! Shame on the Albanese government! From the very beginning it was clear that this was a smoke-and-mirrors strategy from this government with many, many weasel words—'We're on a pathway to full and fair funding.' What a load of rubbish.

All this government has done is duck and weave, and appease the likes of the Australian Education Union. I have to say that I absolutely condemn the Australian Education Union for turning its back on the reforms that we know will make a difference right now. Evidence based teaching is fundamental to turning around our declining school standards. The coalition has long called for evidence-based teaching methods, like explicit instruction, to be mandated in every Australian classroom. Some schools are doing a brilliant job. They are adopting the best evidence-based teaching and they are seeing their NAPLAN results go through the roof. But this minister doesn't have the courage, he doesn't have the guts and he doesn't have the commitment or the passion to drive the reforms that we need right now that we know will not cost a bucketload of money.

How do we know that? We know that because schools are doing it right now with the funding envelope that they are operating under—schools like Marsden Road Public School. I name that school in particular because it is an exceptional school led by an exceptional principal, Manisha Gazula, in a low-SES area of Sydney, in Liverpool, where 90 per cent of students are from a non-English-speaking background. This principal has looked at the evidence. She looked at the ridiculous teacher-training that her teachers received at university and the lack of support that they received, not getting the foundations in how to teach numeracy and literacy. She said, 'Well, that's not good enough. I'm going to bring in the professional support these teachers need; I'm going to give them the coaching; I am going to introduce evidence based teaching, including explicit instruction, in my school; and I'm going to turn around the results of our kids.' These are some of the most disadvantaged children in Sydney.

The biggest disadvantage children can be given in life is to not learn to read and write. Disadvantage is not defined by a child's postcode. It is defined by poor and ineffective teaching, through no fault of the teachers themselves. How can teachers possibly be expected to excel in the classroom when this ridiculous Education Union is turning its back on all the very best evidence that we know will work?

This minister is a smooth talker, but Australian schools deserve a tough operator. A tough operator is needed to deliver the reforms that children in this country so demand because, at the moment, one in three children are failing NAPLAN. Our results are going backwards. I started my contribution by talking about the very significant increase in funding delivered by the coalition when we were in government—from $13 billion to $25 billion. We've actually seen a 60 per cent increase in schools funding over the last two decades, with a corresponding decline in school standards. That is not good enough. It's an embarrassment. On classroom disruption, we are one of the worst countries in the world.

Our Program for International Student Assessment results, testing year 10 students, shows that half of all year 10 students tested in the most recent international assessment did not achieve expected standards in maths, and 43 per cent of year 10 students did not meet the grade in reading.

So, while the minister has talked a big game on the National School Reform Agreement, we have seen no national agreement and we have seen very little in the way of school reforms. I condemn this government for reigniting the funding wars through its own actions and through misleading Australians—the rubbish of a commitment that it gave. Now it's very clear that this government is not going to deliver full and fair funding, as it says, even though the Commonwealth is delivering its full funding commitment to public schools under Gonski. So Jason Clare has led Australian families up the garden path.

This comes at a time when we've seen a full-blown teacher shortage crisis on Jason Clare's watch. There have been some measures announced, but they are lacklustre. The minister is too slow. He's not responding with the urgency that Australian families require. Some 2,000 positions are waiting to be filled right now in New South Wales. More than 1,000 positions are waiting to be filled in Victoria. Some schools are looking for 20 teachers. That's in one school. So this is a dire situation.

The really tragic situation that we find is that the Australian Education Research Organisation—an independent and very important body—has done all the work. We know what works. I have, on numerous occasions, commended the New South Wales government for announcing an end to open classrooms, because how can you teach students effectively in a barn with 180 or 200 kids? It doesn't work. This fad, this era of inquiry based learning, of loose learning, as I call it, has not worked. That's why our standards are going backwards. We are betraying this generation of children.

The minister should be putting a blowtorch to the universities, who are letting down student teachers. They go into a teaching course thinking they're going to get a great education and they get nothing of the sort. That also is appalling. We did a lot of work in government to deliver the reforms that we need to see for universities to lift their game. Rather than just take those reforms and get cracking with the job, the minister spent another 12 months doing another review which basically concluded with almost the same recommendations that we handed down in government. It's delaying action and letting universities off the hook. That is completely inadequate.

It comes at a time when university students and graduates—three million Australians—are staring another massive rise in their students debt in the face—7.1 per cent was the figure by which student debt rose last year due to Labor's skyrocketing inflation. This government talks a big game about tax cuts. What a joke. Three million Australians had their debt increased last year by an average of $1,700 with no action. We know that when you run the economy sensibly and responsibly, as we did—indexation averaged less than two per cent a year under the coalition government—it's a system that works. Under this government, Australian students and graduates, young Australians, including those trying to buy a home, are being gouged by increasing student debt driven by high inflation, which directly equates to high indexation. I say: shame on this minister.

We are seeing reports that, while three million Australians are suffering with increased student debt, the minister's department is holding meetings in one-hat fine-dining restaurants. So, rather than holding meetings in meeting rooms with a cup of tea and a biscuit, he is presiding over a department which is rorting taxpayers' money by holding meetings in restaurants, spending thousands upon thousands of dollars. That is simply not good enough. I condemn this government for the funding wars that it has created. This is a funding debacle. And, of course, it comes at a time when this government is now looking fairly at non-government schools. It has failed to rule out that disgraceful Productivity Commission recommendation that deductible gift recipient status be stripped away from non-government schools, which it says will cost the Catholic sector alone $2 billion. That is just another shambles on Jason Clare's watch.

Tony Sheldon (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

First of all, before I commence, I want to say that I've got a lot of respect for Senator Allman-Payne. I know the passion that she brings to this place for school reform and how genuinely she advocates those views. What the Australian Education Amendment (Save Our Public Schools) Bill 2023 is proposing, however, would commit the government to unilaterally increasing its share of government school funding. It fundamentally ignores the role of the states and territories in these arrangements. Governments, in funding schools that they administer, have to also carry a responsibility. This is part of the federation process that actually occurs within our systems of government across this country. It's a critical role that those negotiations play in making sure that we uplift the states and territories' participation, enrolment and policy approaches to schools funding. Part of the school funding arrangements means that changes in school funding or arrangements in school funding need an intergovernmental discussion, state by state, territory by territory, because that's how the federation works. It's not as simple as just saying, 'Do this and in return we get a better system.' It is not that simple.

Of course money plays a role, and that's a critical piece that every government has played in making sure that we do get changes. The Gonski support that this government and previous iterations of Labor governments have taken up in support of improved funding is critical in terms of making sure that we have better outcomes in our schools. The government's taking critical steps towards fairer funding through the O'Brien review and the upcoming negotiation of the National School Reform Agreement for 2025. That's a fundamental process of making sure that we get it all right. Funding models, funding arrangements and navigating state and territory engagement are critical pieces of making sure that we get the whole cake made, that we get the ingredients right, and that, when it's baked and it rises, it rises for everybody.

Currently, no public school outside the ACT is at the full and fair funding level. As we know, the Albanese government remains committed to working with states and territories so that every school has 100 per cent of fair funding levels in the next National School Reform Agreement. We're committed to that. We've said that on numerous occasions. The bill that's proposed by the Greens would commit the government to unilaterally increasing its share of government school funding while ignoring the role of the state and territory governments in funding schools that they administer and the established process of the National School Reform Agreement. This is a process through which funding can be tied to agreed reforms. That's the critical piece. This is the way that you actually get agreed reforms. That's what a federation does. That's why we are in a federation. That's how the federation works.

The Commonwealth is currently negotiating with the states and territories on the next National School Reform Agreement. We are using this opportunity to ensure that the funding the Commonwealth provides to states and territories is tied to reforms which will make our education system better and fairer. The Productivity Commission found that the equity gap in schools widened under the coalition's schools agreement signed by the member for Cook. Students from disadvantaged backgrounds were found to be three times more likely to be behind. Eighty-six thousand students didn't meet either the basic literacy or the basic numeracy standard. It's clear that students, especially from disadvantaged backgrounds, were being left behind under the coalition's schools agreement. It requires a sophisticated, thoughtful and appropriate approach to make sure that we rectify those mistakes that were made so glaringly by the coalition. The Albanese government is determined to make the Australian education system better and fairer for everybody.

Sitting suspended from 09:30 to 11:00

As I was saying before, the Productivity Commission found that the equity gap in schools widened under the coalition's school agreement signed by the member for Cook. It's clear that students, especially from disadvantaged backgrounds, were being left behind under the coalition's school agreement. Students from disadvantaged backgrounds were three times more likely to be left behind. Eighty-six thousand students didn't meet either the basic literacy standard or the numeracy standard.

The Albanese government is determined, as I said before, to make the Australian education system better and fairer. The Albanese government are making meaningful progress towards our commitment to work with states and territories to get every school to a hundred per cent of its fair funding level.

On 31 January 2024 Minister Clare signed a statement of intent with the Western Australian Minister for Education, committing to fund all Western Australian government schools to a hundred per cent of the SRS and implementing reforms as part of the next NSRA. These are significant changes. This is actually Labor delivering on what it committed to do. This is righting those wrongs that were done under the Morrison government. This is about disadvantaged students now getting a leg-up from the Labor Albanese government in cooperation with the states. And this is not the end of the project. This is an important part of the pathway of the project—our ambition and our desire and our determination to make sure that we deliver on those commitments that we've made for a hundred per cent of the SRS to be delivered.

The Australian government will invest, in the case of Western Australia, an additional $777.4 million over 2025 to 2029 in Western Australian public schools from 2025. Under that agreement, the most disadvantaged schools will reach full and fair funding first in 2025. We are delivering. Every child in Western Australia will attend a fully funded school in 2026. I'd like to commend the Western Australian government for taking up this historic agreement with the Albanese government. It's a momentous achievement for both governments which will help students from all backgrounds achieve their full potential.

Importantly, the National School Reform Agreement will tie funding to reforms to improve outcomes. That's critical. That's why you do negotiations with states, that's why you reach agreements—because it's a shared responsibility between the parties, between our very states and between the states and the government nationally. These are critical reforms that take place across our states and territories, and to have reform in this space you have to be able to reach agreement. Western Australia's been a trailblazer in that important step forward that we've committed to and that we've delivered in Western Australia and committed to delivering across the country.

Importantly, as I say, the National School Reform Agreement will tie funding to reforms to improve outcomes. That is the fundamental, critical thing. That's one of the reasons I'm opposed to this proposition put forward by the Greens—because we have to actually make sure that we have tied funding to reforms to improve outcomes. That's a shared discussion, that's a shared negotiation and that's a shared ambition to make sure that we deliver together with the states, in cooperation.

Specific reforms are subject to negotiations with each of the states and territories. By tying funding to reform, the next schools agreement is our opportunity to make our education system better and fairer. It's fundamental. You've got to get the parties into a room. You've got to have those negotiations. You've got to talk it through. You've got to reach those ambitions together. And you've got to have the form on how those reforms work. We're tying the funding to reforms, as per Minister Clare's announcement on 29 March 2023 about the review to inform a better and fairer education system. He said that the reforms will be focused on driving real and measurable improvements for students and will further support student outcomes and wellbeing.

The review was published on Monday 11 December 2023 and has advised on key reforms related to equity, wellbeing and teacher workforce. These are significant pieces of change that need to be, and are being, appropriately negotiated with the states and territories. I repeat: they are being delivered. In Western Australia, they are being delivered in the form and the format that has been clearly spelt out between the two governments. There is $777.4 million over 2025 to 2029 in additional investment and funding going to Western Australian schools.

The Australian government is committed to ensuring that every child has access to high-quality education. As part of this, the Australian government is working with state and territory governments to get every school to 100 per cent of its fair funding level. This will ensure that every school is appropriately resourced to provide a high-quality education to all students, to make sure that we pick up those failures from the previous coalition government, to make sure that we have the opportunities for all Australians, including disadvantaged Australians, so that we can rise all boats in the Australian education system and make sure the opportunities for our teachers are more and more robust and we are dealing with the challenges that many in the teacher workforce have.

The agreement reached with the Western Australian government is a landmark moment for public education. I'm sure that the senators representing Western Australia—and we heard comments earlier from beside me—are pleased to hear that the Albanese government, with that investment, will make those real changes. The bill being proposed by the Greens would see the Commonwealth increase its share of the SRS from 20 per cent to 25 per cent in one year for government schools, without transition. That does not make sense. If you want to get the reforms that many of us want—and there is lots of common ground that we have within this place—then you have to tie the transition funding proposed in the National School Reform Agreement together. You have to tie it together. You don't simply go off and say, 'Here's the amount in one year, 20 to 25 per cent.' That's where the parties come together and have those proper discussions. Let's make sure those discussions take place. Let's make sure that the Western Australian program is an example of what can occur elsewhere.

The next National School Reform Agreement will make sure the funding is tied to the sorts of things we need in our schools that will help our kids to learn and to realise their full potential. The reforms this agreement will implement will make a huge difference to the students, schools and families in Western Australia. These reforms will mean that students are more likely to catch up and stay caught up, closing the education gap. They are crucial to maximising Australia's potential and preparing for the country's future. These are fundamental, important steps.

As we said to some of the comments from the coalition, this government is absolutely committed to working collaboratively with each state and territory to achieve full and fair funding for schools. But, to reach the goal, the Commonwealth needs to chip in. States need to chip in. We need to work together to get the job done, and I'm confident that we can do that. Unlike the coalition, we are more interested in delivering outcomes than in picking fights and placing blame. The former coalition government was notorious for pushing the job onto someone else. That's not our approach. We're making sure that these reforms and these opportunities are done in cooperation with the states while we incentivise those sorts of arrangements, as we've seen in Western Australia. We've seen that people can have those hard conversations to come up with the right answers to deal with disadvantage, deal with opportunity and deal with the future.

The former coalition government was notorious for pushing jobs onto someone else. This government is determined to make the education system better and fairer across the board. For schools this means achieving full and fair funding and tying the funding to reforms that will close the education gap, improving student wellbeing and attracting and retaining a stronger teacher workforce.

The coalition claim that funding won't fix the issue. Funding alone won't make our education system better and fairer, but that is why we are tying funding to reforms in the next National School Reform Agreement. (Time expired)

Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the question be now put.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the question be put on the second reading of the Australian Education Amendment (Save Our Public Schools) Bill 2023.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It being after 11.15, I will move to formal motions.