Carina Garland (Chisholm, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Education changes lives. I spoke about this in my very first speech. I spoke about both the impact on my own family's life that education had had and of my deep commitment to ensuring that all children can access a great education in this country and the opportunities that that education provides. As a great education can change individual lives, a great education system changes countries.

We are seeing this in Australia now due to our Better and Fairer Schools Agreement. I see this in my visits to our terrific classrooms in Chisholm, my electorate. When a child learns to read, their world opens. When a teenager finishes school, their future expands. And when a government invests in education at the forefront of its agenda, it invests in the country's future, prosperity and equality.

This week marks one year since every state and territory made a very important investment through the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement—an investment not just about now but about the future of this country. For the first time in the history of the Commonwealth, every government in Australia committed to putting public schools on a path to full and fair funding because, when it comes to investment in our children, funding should not be discriminatory. We should also be very proud of the legacy Australia and the states had, pre-federation, in establishing public education. It's the vision that Australia has always had about being fair and providing opportunity for all.

We want every child to have every opportunity to thrive and harness the power of education and knowledge. The Better and Fairer Schools Agreement represents the largest investment ever by an Australian government in public education. It means an additional $16.5 billion over the next decade and then another $50 billion in the decade after that. This isn't just about expenditure. It's about nation building. We know that funding alone is not enough and that it's how we utilise that funding that matters. That's why this agreement ties investment to evidence based reform that helps children catch up, keep up and finish school and that supports teachers and educators. I really want to thank all of the teachers, support staff and educators for the work that they do each and every single day in all of our schools, including in our public schools in Victoria. We want reform that ensures no child is held back and no child is left behind just because of their postcode or what school they attend.

One year on from this agreement, we are already starting to see great results. School attendance is going back up. After falling under the previous government from 93 per cent to 86 per cent, attendance is now improving again, having risen to nearly 89 per cent in 2025. We are seeing early improvements in NAPLAN results, with more students reaching the highest level of proficiency. This is really encouraging and this matters because, when children are in school, they learn and, when they learn, they succeed and find out who they want to be and how they can contribute to our shared Australian story. We're also seeing more young Australians finish school. In 2025, 12,000 more students completed high school than in the year before, so that means 12,000 more futures have been opened, that more opportunities have been created and that there are more ways that people can contribute to their neighbours and their society.

We're also seeing more people choosing to become teachers. I've got a lot of teachers in my family. I know what a fine profession it is. I know how hard the work can be at times, and it's really encouraging to see people wanting to take that step and pursue this very important career. After years of decline under the former coalition governments, where education policy kept chopping and changing—it was very inconsistent—we saw a 22 per cent drop in students choosing to study education. But now, in 2026, the numbers are rising again for the third year in a row, and that's because the Albanese Labor government understands that, if we want a great education system, we need great teachers. I'm sure everyone in this House can recall a teacher in their life who had a huge effect on them.

We need to support great teachers, and that's exactly what this agreement does. It invests in evidence based teaching, ensuring teachers have the tools that work. It supports early intervention, like phonics and numeracy checks, so we can identify problems before they grow. It funds small-group tutoring so no student falls permanently behind, and it strengthens wellbeing support so students are ready to learn. Education is not just about the classroom and academics. It's about building our children up as Australians, which means building up their confidence, providing opportunity and making sure they're treated with dignity.

Fairness is the foundation of this agreement, and, for too long, not every school in Australia has been funded to the level that it needs. That disadvantage has influenced outcomes. It's meant people haven't been able to access the opportunities that every Australian deserves. This agreement changes that. It puts every public school on a path to full and fair funding. It closes the gap and it ensures that a child's future is not determined by their postcode.

Talent is in our children and our educators everywhere in this country, and opportunity should be too. The benefits of getting this right are enormous. When students finish year 12, they earn more—about 20 per cent more over their lifetime. When more young people succeed, our economy grows. This is good for all of us. In fact, lifting completion rates could add $65 billion to the economy by 2050. So it's not just about education policy. This is about economic policy. It's about social policy. This is how we build Australia's future, a better future, which is the sentiment behind every single decision that the Albanese Labor government has made.

Amongst all of this, though, it's important to recognise that we're not quite there yet in terms of achieving what we can in this space. There is still more work to do, and that's why this agreement is not a quick fix. It's a 10-year plan, and it's a plan to lift literacy and numeracy, improve attendance and increase year 12 completion. It's also a plan to build a stronger, more sustainable teaching workforce. Most importantly, it's a plan to deliver real results, not just promises, as we've seen under previous governments. Importantly, we're measuring progress here. We're reporting progress. We're holding ourselves accountable.

This agreement operates in conjunction with our other education reforms—whether that be paid prac placements for teaching students, making the HECS system fairer or investing in infrastructure—so parents can see the difference, teachers can feel the difference, and students can live the difference and harness the power of education every day. At the heart of all of this is the idea that every child deserves a great education—not just some children but every child. When we get the settings right, when we make sure that every child has the chance to succeed, we don't just change lives; we change the country. A good education changes lives.

We're building something really big here: a great education system, one that builds a fairer society and one that secures Australia's future—a better future.

Debate adjourned.

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