Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Mason for the question. I enjoyed his interview in the Australian today. There was a very nice photo, but I thought he was a bit harsh about former Prime Minister Howard, if accurate. It would have been useful for Senator Mason to have started with the great success of the rollout of the computers in schools program, the fact that the program is delivering computers to schools in accordance with the government’s commitment and that many children are already accessing those computers and using them in their schooling. The rollout is continuing apace and the government is on track to meet its commitments for the provision of computers in schools. So the characterisation you seek to put by trying to focus on the connection issues, I think, seeks to misrepresent the great success of the program. I think it is about time the opposition recognised the success of many of these programs in lifting the education standards of Australia and giving children greater opportunity. Senator Mason had the opportunity to take us through this in estimates, and he did in part. He has those statistics available to him, and what they will tell him is that the program for the rollout of computers in schools is proceeding apace and that many have already been installed, with the rest progressing. Whenever I go to schools the feedback is that they have been a tremendous resource and are proving education—