Labor’s National Schools Forum will be a talk fest they want to use to hide the hypocrisy and lack of detail that are hallmarks of Bill Shorten and Tanya Plibersek.
Like Kevin Rudd’s Australia 2020 Summit or Kate Ellis’ child care roundtables that delivered no outcomes, Labor will use this Forum as nothing more than a photo opp.
The Turnbull Government’s schools funding overhaul invests an additional $23.5 billion or around $2,300 per student.
But Labor voted against that.
Our plan ensures students that have the greatest need get the greatest levels of funding support.
But Labor voted against that. They wanted to continue the system they set up that would have given 347 notionally overfunded schools an extra $1.6 billion.
We’re growing funding for government schools by an average of 6.4 per cent per student per year compared to 4.2 per cent growth for non-government schools.
But Labor voted against that.
We’re ensuring all schools receiving less than their Commonwealth share of the Schooling Resource Standard will be brought up to that level within six years and all notionally overfunded schools will be brought down to their share of the SRS within a decade compared to the 150 years it would have taken if we’d let Labor’s arrangements continue.
But Labor voted against that.
Our system wipes away the 27 special deals Labor set up that were called a “corruption” of needs-based funding by ‘2011 Gonski Review’ author Ken Boston.
But Labor voted against that.
We’ve engaged David Gonski and a panel of experts to examine best-practice initiatives in classrooms to ensure the additional resources we’re delivering are used as effectively as possible.
This Forum is Labor turning their back on David Gonski and his work.
Months after claiming Labor will spend more money on schools, Bill Shorten and Tanya Plibersek still cannot say how that money will be spent.
Bill Shorten and Tanya Plibersek owe it to students, schools, and families to answer:
• Exactly how much funding will each school get under Labor’s plan? How will they spend their $17 billion?
• How much funding will each school sector in each state receive? Will there be different deals or will all states and systems be treated equally, according to need?
• Given the class warfare in Labor’s rhetoric, which schools will lose funding?
• Does Labor support David Gonski and the panel of experts leading the current review of education initiatives?