Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Before I touch on the topic I want to speak about today, I want to promote the hashtag #womenshearts and put that firmly on the agenda. It is about raising awareness that heart disease and heart attacks is the No. 1 killer of women in this country.

But I now want to turn to the fantasy land that we have been experiencing here in this chamber for most of the morning with the debate that is going on in relation to the outrageous attacks that have been made by this government on the Australian education system: $22 billion dollars is what this government wants to take away from every school child in this country. This government sees education as a cost. But education is about investing in our children. It makes good economic sense. That is fundamentally what the difference is between us and those on that side, who want to cut education. They want to take money away from schoolchildren to give to the big end of town. They want to take money away from our schoolchildren to give millionaires a tax cut. That is what those people are about: Gonski 2. We had Gonski 1, which gave us all the research and told us what was in the best interests at that time for our schoolkids. That is what we are supporting. We will fight, along with every school in this country. After all, 90 per cent of schools in this country do not support the government's legislation. They do not support it.

This government is in turmoil. We have seen since the last election that they have been dysfunctional. We have a Prime Minister who has no control over his caucus. Their own caucus is not being given full information when it comes to the education bill that is before the Senate. They are engaged in a war with themselves. Senator Back, who is leaving the Senate this week, is threatening to cross the floor. He has had a lot of experience with Catholic education in this country and he knows this measure is bad. Senator Duniam is laughing about the cuts. He is laughing about the money that is going to be taken away from every school in Tasmania, his home state. It will be interesting to see if the Catholic Education Parents and Friends Association invites him this year to open their conference. I don't think they will, because Catholic Education knows that this government is the worst government in five decades when it comes to education. Senators on the other side laugh—give a big clap; this is really funny! But people on this side of the chamber will not enter into any deal at all to take away money from our kids, and we certainly will never support the dirty deals that you do with the Greens.

Honourable Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Polly, please resume your seat. Senator Reynolds, you were heard in silence and I would ask that you extend that courtesy, with your colleagues, so that Senator Polly can be heard in silence. Senator Polly.

Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like the clock to be readjusted. They have taken away valuable time in which I could be making the point that this government, on education, on health and on every aspect of their budget, refuses to listen. We have a government that is hell-bent on taking money from school kids, taking away valuable resources and attacking the Catholic Education System. We know that one in five children in this country are educated in the Catholic Education System. That is about choice. We know that at least a third of those children are not Catholics. So it is not about Catholics versus other private schools or the state school system. In regional areas in the majority of instances the Catholic schools are supporting families—it is not just about education—who need help over and above the education of their own children. This is about a social conscience.

Those on the other side clearly do not understand what fairness is, because there is nothing fair in the legislation before us. A smart government would listen to what the sector is telling them and then go away and re-draft the legislation. They could re-draft it and have the support of this chamber, but they do not want to do it, because they are so arrogant, so out of touch and so confident that it does not matter if the education system, or the Catholics, or the unions or the teachers campaign against them until the next election, along with us. They are so arrogant that it will not have any impact on them at all. They ought to look back at what happened on 2 July, when the Prime Minister himself had to dig into his very deep pockets and fund the Liberals' campaign. He bought his way into government and he may very well have to do the same thing when it comes to education. We know this because we are listening to the community. We know the value of education and what it means to our economy. It is an investment. It is not a cost. But those on the other side will always put the big end of town first. Those on the other side who have very deep pockets look forward to your taxation cut at the expense of school children. That is all right for senators on the other side, but I will never do it. I would never put your very deep pockets above children in this country, because they deserve the very best. It is no wonder you are so out of touch. You are so arrogant and so rich that you do not worry about having a social conscience. If you did you would withdraw that legislation and go back to the drawing board and then you have some hope of getting it passed. But you are so arrogant. And we have the Nationals in rural Australia. Who provides education there. It is the Catholics. They come in here crying crocodile tears about regional Australia when it suits them. You have the option indeed today to withdraw it and then come back and then it will get passed. Don't cry crocodile tears in this place.

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It being 2pm we move to questions without notice.