Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Speaker, I ask a supplementary question. The Treasurer has spoken about increased school funding. How would schools in my electorate of Moreton and in other parts of my state be affected if the Queensland government does not sign up to this funding agreement?

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I do thank the member for Moreton, because there are 45 schools in the electorate of Moreton with 21,000 students, and because the Leader of the Opposition has thugged the Premier of Queensland, they are now going to miss out—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member would withdraw the—

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I do withdraw. But, of course, as we know, there are students right across the state of Queensland. We have the electorate of Brisbane, where there are something like 47 schools, and 25,000 students will miss out.

George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Finish your last line!

Mr Dutton interjecting—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Dickson is warned!

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And there we have up in Dawson tens of thousands of students who are going to miss out. The fact is that we need a world-class funding system—

Mr Fletcher interjecting—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Bradfield is warned!

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

to make sure that every child across our country gets the best possible start in life.

And, of course, politics has intervened. The Leader of the Opposition is saying to state premiers, 'Don't sign up!' just like he is saying to the Queensland government, 'Don't sign up to the Cross River Rail,' because he thinks it is in his political interests. And the losers here are the families right across Australia—

Mr Tudge interjecting—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Aston is warned!

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

who will not see this sort of funding increase that they deserve to see.

In Queensland there is the loss of billions of dollars each year, and per school. If you go to a school in the electorates of Brisbane or Moreton, that is something like $2.5 million each over the next six years. That is the loss to education in Queensland: a huge loss right across the country, and all because the Leader of the Opposition puts his political interests over the interests of Australian schoolchildren.