Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Does the Prime Minister agree with the BIS Shrapnel senior economist who recently said in relation to constraints on the growth of the Australian economy that ‘the real, enduring problem is going to be the shortage of skilled labour’? In light of the analysis that the skills shortage is the major constraint on the Australian economy, why did the Commonwealth reduce expenditure on education and training as a proportion of this year’s budget?

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have not seen the full contribution from BIS Shrapnel, but I certainly agree that one of the problems this country faces at present is a shortage of skilled tradesmen. I agree with that. The government recognised that at the time of the last election.

Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It takes four years—

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The deputy leader has asked her question.

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The most significant policy in the last election, dealing with the issue of skills, was the commitment by the government to establish Australian technical colleges. I am very pleased to inform the House that 20 of the 25 technical colleges will be up and running by the beginning of next year.

Kim Wilkie (Swan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Why weren’t they getting trained this year?

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Swan is warned!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I remind the parliament and I remind the member for Jagajaga in particular of an interview on 8 August 2006—it is very contemporary. It was an interview with Michael Costa, who is a senior minister in the New South Wales government. The intro from the ABC presenter said:

After 11 years of Labor government, the Treasurer is happy to admit to other failures.

Michael Costa: We failed to keep our apprentice numbers up—partly that was due to, you know, the focus on the balance sheet, the need to look at cost-cutting strategies—and unfortunately, it seems that apprenticeships was an easy one.

In other words, what that does is implicate the states. The member for Jagajaga talks to me about the investment of this government in skills. Let me remind the member for Jagajaga that we now have 389,000 apprentices and trainees in training. That represents a 151 per cent increase since March 1996. We are providing 167,000 additional places between 2005 and 2008. By contrast, when the now Leader of the Opposition was the Minister for Employment, Education and Training in 1993 there were only 123,000 apprentices in training.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Albanese interjecting

Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms Macklin interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Grayndler is warned and so is the Deputy Leader of the Opposition!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I remind those opposite that, since 1995-96, the Australian government VTE funding has increased by 85 per cent in real terms. Unmet demand for VTE—vocational training and education—places has halved. In other words, the allegation that this government has cut funding for skills training is absolutely incorrect.