Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Education, Minister Watt. Only 1.3 per cent of public schools in this country are fully funded, meaning teachers are burning out from being overworked and underpaid, while many students go without basic resources like textbooks, stationery and laptops. Teachers are increasingly having to pay personally for classroom materials, while out-of-pocket costs for parents and carers are ballooning. Results are declining and students are disengaged, with many unable to even attend school. Is the Labor government aware of the extent of the impact of the crisis of underfunding in public schools?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Allman-Payne. This is a matter that you have asked questions about in the past, and my answer remains that there is only one way that public schools in this country are going to get the funding they deserve, and that is through the election of a Labor government. What we saw over 10 years was cuts to public education funding, and we have made very firm our commitment to deliver public schools with the funding that they need.

Hon. Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

The:

Order across the chamber! Order!

Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

April Fool's Day next week!

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Senator McKenzie, you've had an awful lot to say. I invite you—it's Tuesday night—to put your name down for adjournment. Minister Watt, please continue.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Doesn't it say a lot about the coalition that, when matters of fair funding for public education are raised, they laugh. Every single one of them thinks it's a laughing matter that public education doesn't receive the funding it deserves. I know that many Australians make a choice—they prefer to have a non-government school education for their children, whether it's because of their religious beliefs or for other reasons, and we will support the rights of those parents and families to choose that. What we will also do, unlike what we saw from the coalition, is ensure that public schools have the funding they deserve to deliver the high-quality education that I have chosen for my children. I went through it with my own education, and my family members have taught in the public education system. Please don't come and give me a lecture about public education when you are in a party that can never deliver a single cent of extra funding for public education. You can sit in the corner and throw rocks at other people, but it will only be a Labor government that delivers public education funding, and that is exactly what we are on track to do.

Minister Clare has made it very clear that Commonwealth funding will continue to grow during the one-year extension of the current National School Reform Agreement. For public schools, this includes an increase from $10.6 billion in 2023 to $11.1 billion in 2024. We remain committed to working with the states and territories to get every school, public and non-state, 100 per cent of its fair funding level in the future.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Allman-Payne, a first supplementary?

Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Considering that evidence today shows that poorer kids are up to five years behind their richest peers in NAPLAN, does the Labor government believe that immediate action must be taken to stop this inequality being permanently baked into the system?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Allman-Payne, yes. As I've made repeatedly clear, the Albanese government and any Labor government believes that public education needs its fair share of funding. We recognise the right of families to choose other forms of education for their children, and we will support those choices as well, but we do acknowledge that public education has been grossly underfunded under 10 years of coalition government, and we intend to reverse that.

That is exactly why we entered a one-year extension of the current National School Reform Agreement—a school reform agreement which, under the coalition, saw public funding levels fall for public education. Under us, in just our one-year agreement, education funding is going to increase from $27.3 billion to $28.6 billion, including an increase of half a billion dollars for public schools alone. In the meantime, we are obviously in the process of negotiating a national school reform agreement with the states and territories, and we've made it very clear that we're committed to ensuring every school, public and non-public, receives 100 per cent of its fair funding level.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Allman-Payne, a second supplementary?

Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm not sure that the minister actually accepts the scale and urgency of the crisis. Noting that it would only cost $6 billion to close the funding gap for our public schools, which is a third of what the federal government spends every year on private schools, how can the Albanese government justify not taking immediate action on the underfunding crisis?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It wouldn't be question time without a Greens senator patronising everyone and telling us that we don't understand something, because that is a daily occurrence here.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister Watt, order!

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last week it was Senator Shoebridge patronising us, saying that we wouldn't understand how the law worked.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister Watt, Order!

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Here comes the chief patroniser—

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Senator McKim on a point of order?

Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, President. That was clearly a personal reflection on Senator Allman-Payne. It was false as well as being contrary to standing orders. It needs to be withdrawn.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator McKim, it does not need commentary. You may have noticed I was trying to call order. I was going to ask the minister to withdraw and remind the minister to make his comments through the chair.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I withdraw, and I will ensure that I make all parliamentary and unparliamentary remarks through you, President, in the future—but I withdraw.

Honourable senators interjecting—

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister Watt, I didn't find that funny, and I would expect all senators in this place not to make unparliamentary remarks. Thank you, Minister.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, President. Senator Allman-Payne, I can assure you that I do understand the need—through the chair, President. I can assure you, President, that I do understand Senator Allman-Payne's point. As I say, I don't need to take lectures from a Greens senator about public education, having been educated there myself and educated my kids there, and with almost my entire family being teachers in the public education system, but feel free to come in and give us a lecture any time. The Greens are good at giving lectures. What they are not good at is delivering anything for the Australian public. It is only a Labor government that is going to be delivering public education funding. Thank God we have a Labor government now to deliver the public education funding that we need, because we know it would never have happened under the coalition and we know that all schools wouldn't get the support that they need from a coalition government. (Time expired)

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! I will remind all senators in this place that the standing orders provide for a senator to stand and make a point of order, particularly about unparliamentary behaviour. That means all senators need to also question their own behaviour. It is not okay to interject and wildly point at the minister.