Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister. I refer the Deputy Prime Minister to media reports that the bungled computers in schools program could blow out even further, because the lowest estimate of on-costs for a state or territory is $4,077, well above the government’s estimate of 2½ thousand dollars. And that is the lowest estimate. Is the bungled computers in schools program as open-ended as the Deputy Prime Minister’s other favourite and now discarded policy, Medicare Gold? Deputy Prime Minister, what will the final cost to taxpayers be of the bungled computers in schools policy?

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

I thank the shadow minister for education for his question. In interjections yesterday he said to this parliament that he thought money spent on computers in schools was not worth doing. He does not want Australian students to have the learning tool of the 21st century. If he believed Australian students should have the learning tool of the 21st century then presumably when he was a member of the government he would have ensured that the government did something comprehensive to get computers into schools. But of course it fell to this government, when we came into office, to audit and see that some of the students in the schools were without computers that were less than four years old. Many of them were in schools where the computer to student ratio was eight to one or worse—eight kids, nine kids, a dozen kids or 15 kids fighting to get access to one computer, left with completely outmoded technology or not having access to computers at all.

This government is acting, as part of its digital education revolution, to make sure that students have access to the learning tools of the 21st century. The shadow minister can go around with his hysterical misrepresentations all he likes, but the facts are these: the government is delivering its program; it has delivered round 1; it is in the middle of delivering round 2. This is working to get computers to kids in schools.

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Pyne interjecting

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Sturt!

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

The program will deliver an effective one to one ratio. We worked with our state and territory colleagues to deal with questions about on-costs, and they were resolved at COAG on Saturday. I know that the shadow minister is going to keep carrying on about this because he does not want to see Australian students—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Pyne interjecting

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Sturt!

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

with the learning tools of the 21st century, he does not want to see transparency—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Pyne interjecting

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Sturt is warned!

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

he does not want to see a quality national curriculum in schools, he presumably does not want to see our one billion-dollar national partnership for disadvantaged schools, he presumably does not want to see $550 million spent on teacher quality and he presumably does not want to see hundreds of millions of extra dollars for primary schools, because he sits there with no policies and no plans but a shameful legacy to cover up.