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

I thank Senator Barnett for the question. He is right to bring to my attention the question of the impact of the school closures on BER funding in Tasmania, but I point out to him firstly that in fact the federal government put $327 million into Tasmanian schools, the largest capital injection probably ever, and that investment has been money well spent—money that has benefited every child in Tasmania by providing new facilities for all children in primary schools in Tasmania. So it has been a tremendous invest­ment in Tasmanian schools, it has been tremendously successful and communities are reaping the benefits of that.

It is true that the Tasmanian government have announced that they will consult with the community about closing up to 20 schools, and the Tasmanian Minister for Education and Skills, Nick McKim, did do me the courtesy of ringing me before the budget was handed down to advise me of that. We did discuss that decision's impact in terms of the investment we had made in those schools as part of BER funding. I understand the process of consultation will go on for some weeks before final decisions are made about which schools will close, and my department will continue to monitor and work closely with the Tasmanian gov­ernment with regard to the affected schools, wherever they may be.

I think the media might also have highlighted today that the Tasmanian government has obtained legal advice that it has no legal compulsion to return the BER money. Can I say that what we are interested in is making sure that the funds go to support education in Tasmania and benefit schoolchildren in Australia. That will remain the government's top priority. The Commonwealth does reserve the right to recoup its expenditure on improving these educational facilities, but those decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis. (Time expired)