Phillip Thompson (Herbert, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Education. Will the minister please update the House on how the Morrison government is supporting the unique needs of local school communities around the country, including in my electorate of Herbert?

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Minister for Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Herbert for his question. I saw firsthand the passion he has for the schools in his local community after the floods that occurred in Townsville. I had the pleasure of visiting the member for Herbert after those floods. He introduced me to principals, to teachers and to parents whose schools had been impacted by those floods and he strongly advocated on behalf of those schools. Last month I had the pleasure to join him again where we were able to provide $4 million for schools in North Queensland that had been impacted by floods and droughts. That will benefit 600 students at those schools. Those schools had waived fees. They'd given books to students who'd had their books impacted by the floods and it was all because of the advocacy by the member for Herbert. He did an outstanding job and it was clear whose side he was on when it came to standing up for the schools in his local community.

I say the same goes for the Morrison government: $310 billion is our record investment in Catholic, independent and state schools. That's a 62 per cent increase per student in those Catholic, independent and government schools over the next decade. But there's more: $30.2 million for the Local Schools Community Fund. That will mean every member of parliament in the House of Representatives will get allocated $200,000 per electorate. What you can do is invite all the schools in your electorate to apply for small-scale projects at their school. The opposition might mock the idea of the Local Schools Community Fund but we on this side know how incredibly important those small-scale projects can be. They can strengthen those local school communities. We on this side are on the side of those local school communities. That's why the Morrison government announced that $30.2 million in the budget. I say to everyone: engage with your state schools, with your Catholic schools and with your independent schools. Get behind this Local Schools Community Fund because it will help strengthen local schools in your communities. That's what we on this side want to see occur right across this nation.