Jacinta Collins (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Hansard source

You're right, Senator O'Neill: he is contemptuous. He thinks that because to some extent he has, to date, gotten away with this sort of behaviour with very important policy sectors here in Australia, Catholic Education being the example—Mr President, you're aware of these issues in some detail; you're aware of how upset education stakeholders are at this minister's behaviour. And I don't need to revisit all those atrocities, because they are hotly felt. And even if Malcolm Turnbull is ultimately forced into new arrangements, they won't forget. They will not forget. Indeed, I know even from some of the suggestions that come forward about how the opposition should address issues in the school education space—they're still in that space, Senator Birmingham. They haven't moved on about how things might improve in the future—no: there is so much anger and resentment that I don't think they will forget what occurred here anytime soon. Catholic Education will be in the press—as they were yesterday, as they are today and as they will be tomorrow—highlighting how poorly you have conducted the policy discussions, or indeed nondiscussions, that should have occurred with the major education reforms you are attempting to move forward by sleight of hand.

This Senate knows this because we spent hour upon hour upon hour working through those issues. And probably a more effective crossbench at the time were able to achieve the revisiting of many issues and significant concessions and processes, some of which are still afoot. In fact, maybe this is today's sleight of hand that I should refer to, because this motion isn't the first one. The other one was the article in Fairfax today, in which it is suggested that a particular report about the School Resourcing Board and their consideration of matters—