Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Whilst I have a lot of regard for my colleague on the other side of the chamber, the member for Scullin, it is once again instructive to stand in this chamber—also having stood in the House—talking about education funding and listen to five minutes of whingeing and whining and complaining with no constructive solution to the problem, as usual.

I am very pleased to stand in this chamber today and speak about our education funding package, very pleased indeed. There is not a single school in my electorate that is not getting an increase in funding. As I go around to my schools and talk to the principals about the funding package, they are very happy.

An opposition member: Check your emails!

I have checked my emails—I have not had a single email of complaint. They are all happy. It is very pleasing to speak about our funding package for schools. Importantly, more than just this funding package, this government should be congratulated because in Queensland, after we were elected in 2013, in the 2014 budget we put an extra $800 million of funding into Queensland schools. Those opposite did not put this into Queensland schools, because the Queensland government had not signed an agreement. That funding has been extremely important and valuable to schools in my electorate.

The schools have used that for a range of activities. In fairness to Education Queensland, and I will give them kudos for this, that money went in full to the schools. The schools were able to design their own programs that suited their own school cohorts of students. I am pleased to say that this funding package builds on that extra $800 million that we have previously put into Queensland schools. It is about putting students first. That is what we have always done. We had the education minister, Minister Birmingham, in the electorate several weeks ago. He had a forum with the majority of principals at our schools and they were all happy with what had been proposed.

I will give you a flavour of how some of our schools have benefited. Mount Warren Park State School, which has more than 680 students, will be allocated an extra $1,705 per student from 2007 funding levels. But this is not the only school in my electorate that will benefit under this funding package. Total Commonwealth funding from 2018 to 2027 for Beenleigh State High School will be around $60 million, a total increase of around $14.2 million. Commonwealth funding, for the same period, for Loganlea State High School will be around $35 million, a total increase of some $8 million. Eagleby South State School will have funding of about $14.6 million, an increase of some $3.5 million.

This shows, quite clearly, without going into the other 42 schools in the electorate, how the claims of those opposite are completely without foundation or basis. This education funding package is fair, transparent and consistent, and it reflects the needs based funding model that Gonski outlined. It is record funding for the schools in my electorate of Forde and for schools around the country. So those opposite can complain and whinge and whine, because that is all they ever have to offer. They do not have anything constructive to offer. It is this government on this side of the chamber that is doing the work necessary to ensure our schools are fully funded. My question to the minister is: how will the Commonwealth's allocation of funding grow for the government, right across schools in all sectors in my home state of Queensland, and how is that going to benefit students in those schools?

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