House debates

Thursday, 17 June 2010

Questions without Notice

Schools

3:39 pm

Photo of Sharryn JacksonSharryn Jackson (Hasluck, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Education, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations and Minister for Social Inclusion. How is the government investing in our schools and are there any threats to this funding and threats to jobs in particular in Western Australia?

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

I thank the member for Hasluck for her question. Today I thought it was appropriate, with the Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Leader of the Opposition’s chair, to reflect on a recent visit I had to her electorate in Western Australia. I visited Curtin and there I learned some things about education in Western Australia and about jobs in Western Australia. Curtin is a very nice electorate. I enjoyed my visit there. I particularly enjoyed finding out about the 19 libraries our Building the Education Revolution program is delivering, the 27 new classrooms that are being delivered, the 16 multipurpose halls and the refurbishment of all of the schools in the electorate of Curtin. I also enjoyed finding out about the new computers that kids in the electorate of Curtin had as a result of this government’s computers in schools program. There they are in the electorate of Curtin. We have delivered 1,792 computers. That is very important because under this government there would be more to come to join those computers. Under the opposition, of course, there would be no more computers and no more delivery of Building the Education Revolution.

I was also interested to find out that there are 29,757 small businesses in Curtin and these small businesses would be looking forward to the reduction in company tax and the special measures for taxation for small businesses in the government’s resource super profits tax package. I believe as well that there would be 42,000 taxpayers in Curtin looking forward to benefiting from the government’s superannuation reforms. So I learned a lot about the electorate of Curtin when I was there.

I particularly enjoyed a visit to Dalkeith Primary School, and I want to conclude my contribution to question time by marking the moment by indicating I have some gifts for the member for Curtin today.

Government Member:

Always generous!

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

Always generous, that’s me. One of the things that I found out there was that people like a fair day’s pay when they have done a fair day’s work. So, to remind them of Work Choices when that was not the case and to help the member for Curtin in her election campaign where she will be promising Work Choices again, I have brought her a mouse pad to mark the moment, and for the wall of her office I thought she might particularly appreciate  the front page of the Cambridge Post in her electorate recording my visit to Dalkeith Primary School under the headline ‘Revolution in Lib land’—a very good headline, a very flattering photo of the children there. They look very attractive. I will let others judge about the photo of me. But the revolution in Lib land I think will go well on the wall of the member for Curtin.

Photo of Harry JenkinsHarry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Order! I think the Deputy Prime Minister has made her point.

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

With the promise of these two gifts, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.