Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

On the National Disability Insurance Scheme, we have properly budgeted and properly accounted for $1 billion for launch sites that will come into operation from 1 July this year. We have always said in relation to the balance of the full scheme as we reach agreements around the country—and we are still working hard on those; we have reached an agreement with the state of New South Wales—that we will work through COAG processes to reach agreement on the rollout of the full scheme. We, and I in particular, will ask the nation to make a series of quite tough choices, because we will need to fund the National Disability Insurance Scheme by making a set of what will be tough decisions as we look for savings and direct them to the National Disability Insurance Scheme. We have always said that we would do that in the budget.

In terms of our plans for school improvement, we are passionately committed to making sure that every Australian child gets a great education and that we truly distribute opportunity around our country to every child. I have spoken of my sense of disgust at the neglect of Australian schools engaged in by those opposite when they were in government. We have piece by piece worked to change that and we will do more through our National Plan for School Improvement and our school funding model.

Once again—and I refer the member who asked the question to my Press Club address last year—we have made it very clear that we will be asking the nation to make a series of very tough choices as we look for savings in order to support that expenditure. Put simply, we think Australian children should come first. Those opposite might make a different set of decisions, but our decision is that Australian children and the quality of their education should come first.

The government, as it makes announcements, obviously provides proper costings. That is a complete contrast to the approach of the opposition, which does not properly cost. That is how they got themselves into the $11 billion black hole. As we work through announcements and our budgets, we identify savings. We have identified $160 billion of them. We are waiting to see from the opposition a saving that genuinely stacks up. (Time expired)

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