❓ Ms Hanns asks about the impact of the Cook Labor government's TAFE investment on enrolments and cost-of-living pressures. The Minister responds by highlighting record enrolment numbers, particularly in fee-free courses, and the focus on under-represented groups.
AnsweredQoN 482Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
TAFE COURSES —
INVESTMENT
482. Ms J.L. HANNS to the Minister for Training and
Workforce Development:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's
record of delivering affordable TAFE and training options for Western Australians.
(1) Can the
minister advise the house how this investment is delivering record levels of
TAFE enrolments and providing Western Australians facing cost-of-living
pressures with cheaper training opportunities?
(2) Can the
minister advise the house whether she is aware of anyone who opposes this
important investment in WA TAFE?
INVESTMENT
482. Ms J.L. HANNS to the Minister for Training and
Workforce Development:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's
record of delivering affordable TAFE and training options for Western Australians.
(1) Can the
minister advise the house how this investment is delivering record levels of
TAFE enrolments and providing Western Australians facing cost-of-living
pressures with cheaper training opportunities?
(2) Can the
minister advise the house whether she is aware of anyone who opposes this
important investment in WA TAFE?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I thank the member for Collie–Preston for
her question and interest in this matter. I know it is very pertinent to
her electorate and she has had a longstanding interest in in this area before
and since she has entered this place. Of course, it is a great opportunity to
talk about vocational training and the work that this government is doing in
that area. Every month, new records are set. There is new interest and
appreciation, not just in Western Australia
but around the country at a federal level, of the importance of skill
development and the work and effort involved—not just the
resources and money, but the thoughtful application of those resources to
ensure that we have the skills needed to meet the current skills demand and the
skills demand of the next decades.
One of those records that we just
reached, of which I am very proud, is our achievement of a record high in
publicly funded vocational course enrolments in 2023. There were 153 800. It is
amazing. A record number of people are enrolling in vocational training at TAFE
and at private providers funded by the state and federal government at record
levels in Western Australia. We should be really proud of that. It is important
for industry and employers, and for those people who are getting those skills.
It is life-changing for them to get skills and qualifications, lift their
skills and go and get work that is meaningful, gives them income and gives them
choices. There are so many wins, and I am very proud of the work that we have
done as a state government since 2017.
I will just go through the records
that have been broken. I talked about the number of publicly funded enrolments
in 2023. Those enrolments were 10 per cent higher than they were in the
previous year. They broke the previous record in 2021, which was 150 000
enrolments.
If we look at fee-free qualifications
and skill sets, fee-free enrolments are up 33 per cent from 2023, the previous
year. That is massive; they are up one-third. For heavily discounted courses,
there are over 58 000 enrolments, so it is massive. It is important that we are
not just throwing money into the system generally;
as I said, there has been a thoughtful application of how we are applying these
resources. The big winners in this have been those in-demand areas of
care, social assistance and health care. Early education and care, nursing and
health continue to attract the strongest interest amongst fee-free courses;
that is the case at the moment, as well as for the last couple of years. When
we look at our courses with heavily reduced fees, that is actually where we are
also getting some really important buy-in. We are seeing that in the
trade-related courses. We are not offering many of those completely free—some
of them we are—but they are heavily reduced. We are also seeing, for
instance, in electrical training, some heavily reduced training and some record
take-up.
It is not only the sort of courses
that we are offering, but also that we are targeting those sections of the
workforce that are under-represented in paid employment. We need to lift those
people's engagement in the workforce, not only for meeting skills
demands, but also for those individuals. When we think about the number of
vacancies we have across the board across the state, it is good for those
people, not only women—obviously it is always important that we give
our attention to how we increase their enrolment in the workforce—but
also people with disabilities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people,
and people from non-English speaking backgrounds. For instance, enrolments of
people with disabilities were up 19 per cent
from 2022–23, so nearly 20 per cent up in terms of fee-free courses.
Also, two-thirds of all enrolments in
fee-free qualifications were by women. That is fantastic. Again, this is up
nearly 12 per cent from 2022–23. Finally, there is also an
increase for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Obviously, all this is in sharp
contrast to the opposition's track record. I am always very pleased to
get up and remind this place, as well as the
public, about what they did when they were in government. It is not only
what they did not do—they did not invest; they did not put any
thoughtful application into the policy and
the application of resources—but, in fact, they did wilful damage to
the system. They increased fees. Some of those TAFE fees went up
fivefold. We saw apprentice and training commencements fall by nearly 10 500.
The number of people in training fell by over 10 000. The number of completions
fell by 5 700—nearly 6 000. In all those metrics, the numbers of
commencements, people in training and completions were all down under the
previous government.
Finally, let us not forget the cost
of those courses. A diploma of nursing qualification under the previous
government cost $10 000. A diploma of electronics and communications
engineering cost over $8 000. A diploma of early childhood education and care—crucial
in not only the metropolitan area but also the regions—cost over $7 000.
A cert IV in building and construction cost $4 000. Do members know how much
all those courses cost under WA Labor? They do not cost. They are free.
Members, there has never been a better
or more popular time to train in Western Australia.
her question and interest in this matter. I know it is very pertinent to
her electorate and she has had a longstanding interest in in this area before
and since she has entered this place. Of course, it is a great opportunity to
talk about vocational training and the work that this government is doing in
that area. Every month, new records are set. There is new interest and
appreciation, not just in Western Australia
but around the country at a federal level, of the importance of skill
development and the work and effort involved—not just the
resources and money, but the thoughtful application of those resources to
ensure that we have the skills needed to meet the current skills demand and the
skills demand of the next decades.
One of those records that we just
reached, of which I am very proud, is our achievement of a record high in
publicly funded vocational course enrolments in 2023. There were 153 800. It is
amazing. A record number of people are enrolling in vocational training at TAFE
and at private providers funded by the state and federal government at record
levels in Western Australia. We should be really proud of that. It is important
for industry and employers, and for those people who are getting those skills.
It is life-changing for them to get skills and qualifications, lift their
skills and go and get work that is meaningful, gives them income and gives them
choices. There are so many wins, and I am very proud of the work that we have
done as a state government since 2017.
I will just go through the records
that have been broken. I talked about the number of publicly funded enrolments
in 2023. Those enrolments were 10 per cent higher than they were in the
previous year. They broke the previous record in 2021, which was 150 000
enrolments.
If we look at fee-free qualifications
and skill sets, fee-free enrolments are up 33 per cent from 2023, the previous
year. That is massive; they are up one-third. For heavily discounted courses,
there are over 58 000 enrolments, so it is massive. It is important that we are
not just throwing money into the system generally;
as I said, there has been a thoughtful application of how we are applying these
resources. The big winners in this have been those in-demand areas of
care, social assistance and health care. Early education and care, nursing and
health continue to attract the strongest interest amongst fee-free courses;
that is the case at the moment, as well as for the last couple of years. When
we look at our courses with heavily reduced fees, that is actually where we are
also getting some really important buy-in. We are seeing that in the
trade-related courses. We are not offering many of those completely free—some
of them we are—but they are heavily reduced. We are also seeing, for
instance, in electrical training, some heavily reduced training and some record
take-up.
It is not only the sort of courses
that we are offering, but also that we are targeting those sections of the
workforce that are under-represented in paid employment. We need to lift those
people's engagement in the workforce, not only for meeting skills
demands, but also for those individuals. When we think about the number of
vacancies we have across the board across the state, it is good for those
people, not only women—obviously it is always important that we give
our attention to how we increase their enrolment in the workforce—but
also people with disabilities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people,
and people from non-English speaking backgrounds. For instance, enrolments of
people with disabilities were up 19 per cent
from 2022–23, so nearly 20 per cent up in terms of fee-free courses.
Also, two-thirds of all enrolments in
fee-free qualifications were by women. That is fantastic. Again, this is up
nearly 12 per cent from 2022–23. Finally, there is also an
increase for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Obviously, all this is in sharp
contrast to the opposition's track record. I am always very pleased to
get up and remind this place, as well as the
public, about what they did when they were in government. It is not only
what they did not do—they did not invest; they did not put any
thoughtful application into the policy and
the application of resources—but, in fact, they did wilful damage to
the system. They increased fees. Some of those TAFE fees went up
fivefold. We saw apprentice and training commencements fall by nearly 10 500.
The number of people in training fell by over 10 000. The number of completions
fell by 5 700—nearly 6 000. In all those metrics, the numbers of
commencements, people in training and completions were all down under the
previous government.
Finally, let us not forget the cost
of those courses. A diploma of nursing qualification under the previous
government cost $10 000. A diploma of electronics and communications
engineering cost over $8 000. A diploma of early childhood education and care—crucial
in not only the metropolitan area but also the regions—cost over $7 000.
A cert IV in building and construction cost $4 000. Do members know how much
all those courses cost under WA Labor? They do not cost. They are free.
Members, there has never been a better
or more popular time to train in Western Australia.
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