❓ Ms. Kent asks the Premier about initiatives to restore and enhance the TAFE system and how the government's record compares to the previous Liberal-National government. The Premier details fee increases under the previous government, and investments and fee reductions under the current Labor government.
AnsweredQoN 864Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
TAFE — FEES AND INFRASTRUCTURE
864. Ms A.E. KENT to the Premier:
I refer to the Cook Labor
government's commitment to providing quality, affordable training
opportunities to all Western Australians.
(1) Can the
Premier outline to the house this Labor government's initiatives to
restore and enhance the TAFE system in Western Australia?
(2) Can the
Premier advise the house how this government's record compares with the
record of the former Liberal–National government?
864. Ms A.E. KENT to the Premier:
I refer to the Cook Labor
government's commitment to providing quality, affordable training
opportunities to all Western Australians.
(1) Can the
Premier outline to the house this Labor government's initiatives to
restore and enhance the TAFE system in Western Australia?
(2) Can the
Premier advise the house how this government's record compares with the
record of the former Liberal–National government?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I
thank the member for the question. A key value and pillar of a WA Labor
government is that everyone should have access to quality education and
training opportunities. This is integral to what we believe in; that is, we want people to have the opportunities
to get the skills they need to have rewarding jobs and lives in our
community, but also to contribute to the overall economy and wellbeing of our
community. The opportunities that we see in TAFE are absolutely fundamental to
what we believe in and how we want to make
sure they continue to provide an affordable way for people to undertake courses
to get the skills they need to get the jobs they deserve.
Strangely enough, those values are
not shared by everyone in the Parliament. When we had the Liberal–National
government, we saw what it did to training in Western Australia. It deserves
reminding, and we will remind the community and the public time and again about
what that mob did to training in the TAFE sector when it was in government. We
saw record increases in fees year after year. Let us take a couple of examples.
Some courses were hiked by as much as 510 per cent, putting TAFE out of reach
for many young Australians. For instance, the cost of a diploma in mental
health went from $600 to a whopping $6 311. At a time when we wanted more
people to take up these skills due to growing demand for mental health services, that mob, in government, put them out of the
reach of a lot of students. The cost of an advanced diploma in engineering
technology in electricity to become an electrical engineer went from $1 700
to $11 256. It was an extraordinary growth in those fees. The legacy of the
Liberals and Nationals was self-evident in the plummeting numbers of people
studying at TAFE. Between 2013 and 2016, there was a 25 per cent drop in people going to TAFE. That is extraordinary.
There was a 25 per cent drop in the number of people getting the skills
they needed to get the jobs that they deserved. As a result, apprentice and
trainee numbers plummeted. At the same time, there was no real investment in
TAFE campuses designed to upskill future generations. Members, it is a shameful
record and period for TAFE in this state.
My WA Labor government has put a lot
of hard work into repairing the damage done by the opposition because Labor
governments believe in access to education and training. First, we started by
freezing TAFE fees. Then, as the budget repair progressed, we began cutting
fees. Then, we began upgrading our TAFEs—building better facilities and
expanding courses. Under the Minister for Training we are seeing a huge
investment of around $247 million in upgrading TAFEs. I have seen this take
place. I have seen it in Mandurah. I have seen it in Albany. I have seen it in
north metro and I have seen it in south metro. TAFE campuses are being
redeveloped and upgraded so that young people can get the skills they need, for not only the jobs of today, but also the jobs
of the future, which we will absolutely depend on, particularly as we
look to the energy transition that we will shortly experience. We consulted
industry to ensure that TAFE courses responded to the skills required. Bit by
bit, we have restored our training sector to the point that it is now world
class.
Perhaps
our proudest initiative has been introducing fee-free TAFE. We have had more
than 30 000 students benefit from our 130 Free in '23 courses.
These are incredible results. I think we were targeting around 19 000 students
and it has got to 30 000. We have also partnered with the federal government to
offer more free courses in 2024.
The results are black and white.
These are stark statistics. In 2022, there were 140 000 people enrolled in courses, an increase of 18 per cent on
pre-pandemic levels. That is an extraordinary record and one of which we
are very proud. Apprenticeship and traineeship commencements are also now at
the highest level in around 10 years. Just last week, we announced a further
$21.5 million expansion of our successful wage subsidy scheme to get more building and construction apprentices and
trainees on the job sooner. This will result in 150 more apprenticeships
in our building industry, which was left gutted and damaged by the Liberal and
National Parties. This new investment is part of our plan to do everything we
can to accelerate the diversification of the Western Australian economy,
deliver on housing right across WA and get more young people into training.
I commend the Minister for Training,
Hon Simone McGurk, who has done an incredible job in making sure that we
elevate our whole training sector and that it is fit for purpose for the
economic challenges of the future. Most importantly of all, she has been making
sure that our young people and people who are reskilling have opportunities
through a great TAFE sector that is well resourced by my government.
thank the member for the question. A key value and pillar of a WA Labor
government is that everyone should have access to quality education and
training opportunities. This is integral to what we believe in; that is, we want people to have the opportunities
to get the skills they need to have rewarding jobs and lives in our
community, but also to contribute to the overall economy and wellbeing of our
community. The opportunities that we see in TAFE are absolutely fundamental to
what we believe in and how we want to make
sure they continue to provide an affordable way for people to undertake courses
to get the skills they need to get the jobs they deserve.
Strangely enough, those values are
not shared by everyone in the Parliament. When we had the Liberal–National
government, we saw what it did to training in Western Australia. It deserves
reminding, and we will remind the community and the public time and again about
what that mob did to training in the TAFE sector when it was in government. We
saw record increases in fees year after year. Let us take a couple of examples.
Some courses were hiked by as much as 510 per cent, putting TAFE out of reach
for many young Australians. For instance, the cost of a diploma in mental
health went from $600 to a whopping $6 311. At a time when we wanted more
people to take up these skills due to growing demand for mental health services, that mob, in government, put them out of the
reach of a lot of students. The cost of an advanced diploma in engineering
technology in electricity to become an electrical engineer went from $1 700
to $11 256. It was an extraordinary growth in those fees. The legacy of the
Liberals and Nationals was self-evident in the plummeting numbers of people
studying at TAFE. Between 2013 and 2016, there was a 25 per cent drop in people going to TAFE. That is extraordinary.
There was a 25 per cent drop in the number of people getting the skills
they needed to get the jobs that they deserved. As a result, apprentice and
trainee numbers plummeted. At the same time, there was no real investment in
TAFE campuses designed to upskill future generations. Members, it is a shameful
record and period for TAFE in this state.
My WA Labor government has put a lot
of hard work into repairing the damage done by the opposition because Labor
governments believe in access to education and training. First, we started by
freezing TAFE fees. Then, as the budget repair progressed, we began cutting
fees. Then, we began upgrading our TAFEs—building better facilities and
expanding courses. Under the Minister for Training we are seeing a huge
investment of around $247 million in upgrading TAFEs. I have seen this take
place. I have seen it in Mandurah. I have seen it in Albany. I have seen it in
north metro and I have seen it in south metro. TAFE campuses are being
redeveloped and upgraded so that young people can get the skills they need, for not only the jobs of today, but also the jobs
of the future, which we will absolutely depend on, particularly as we
look to the energy transition that we will shortly experience. We consulted
industry to ensure that TAFE courses responded to the skills required. Bit by
bit, we have restored our training sector to the point that it is now world
class.
Perhaps
our proudest initiative has been introducing fee-free TAFE. We have had more
than 30 000 students benefit from our 130 Free in '23 courses.
These are incredible results. I think we were targeting around 19 000 students
and it has got to 30 000. We have also partnered with the federal government to
offer more free courses in 2024.
The results are black and white.
These are stark statistics. In 2022, there were 140 000 people enrolled in courses, an increase of 18 per cent on
pre-pandemic levels. That is an extraordinary record and one of which we
are very proud. Apprenticeship and traineeship commencements are also now at
the highest level in around 10 years. Just last week, we announced a further
$21.5 million expansion of our successful wage subsidy scheme to get more building and construction apprentices and
trainees on the job sooner. This will result in 150 more apprenticeships
in our building industry, which was left gutted and damaged by the Liberal and
National Parties. This new investment is part of our plan to do everything we
can to accelerate the diversification of the Western Australian economy,
deliver on housing right across WA and get more young people into training.
I commend the Minister for Training,
Hon Simone McGurk, who has done an incredible job in making sure that we
elevate our whole training sector and that it is fit for purpose for the
economic challenges of the future. Most importantly of all, she has been making
sure that our young people and people who are reskilling have opportunities
through a great TAFE sector that is well resourced by my government.
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