❓ The Minister for Education and Training criticises the Commonwealth's Australian Technical Colleges, highlighting low student numbers and lack of financial transparency, while promoting WA's TAFE achievements.
AnsweredQoN 274Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
MINISTERIAL COUNCIL ON VOCATIONAL TRAINING AND EDUCATION
Last week the minister attended the Ministerial Council on Vocational Training and Education with state and commonwealth ministers. Will he please inform the house of the outcomes from that meeting for Australian Technical Colleges? Mr M. McGOWAN
Last week the minister attended the Ministerial Council on Vocational Training and Education with state and commonwealth ministers. Will he please inform the house of the outcomes from that meeting for Australian Technical Colleges? Mr M. McGOWAN
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for the question. Indeed, last week I went to Brisbane and attended the ministerial council with federal minister Hon Andrew Robb, who I found to be a very nice and engaging fellow. At the ministerial council we were able to discuss various issues in training. Of course, I was able to inform the gathering, much to their envy I must say, of Western Australia’s performance in training over the past six years whereby we have nearly doubled the number of apprentices and trainees in the state. We now have around 100 000 people doing courses in our TAFE colleges. Since the last election we have increased the amount of money going towards TAFE colleges by $190 million. In fact, in the last budget we had roughly $50 million of capital injected into TAFE, much of which will be spent in country areas around Western Australia. We have also had the great success of school-based apprenticeships, which have been brought about over the past few years by this government. I expressed some concerns to Minister Robb and to the meeting about the performance of the Australian Technical Colleges that have been established by the commonwealth. Indeed, while advising them that Hon Peter Collier is a supporter of this alternative commonwealth government school system being set up as a rival to the state school system, I was also able to inform them of the views of the former education minister, the member for Cottesloe, Hon Colin Barnett. During parliamentary estimates a couple of weeks ago when we were discussing this issue, Mr Barnett said of the Australian Technical Colleges - It is a very poor policy. I said so at the time. I was able to inform Hon Andrew Robb that a former Liberal Party education minister of five years thought that his technical colleges, the commonwealth’s alternative school system, were very poor policy. I was also able to ask him why, with three years to set them up and national expenditure of around $500 million, we now have 62 students in Australian Technical Colleges in WA. There are two colleges and 62 students; one college, in Port Hedland, has no students - not a single student. It defies belief that the commonwealth would spend $500 million across the country and that in Western Australia, the state driving the Australian economy, 62 students are in these colleges. I put a motion on the books asking the commonwealth to reveal what is the cost per student, what are the attrition rates of these colleges, and all the other financial information that we make available of our state schools and TAFE colleges. Do you know what the answer was, Mr Speaker? No, the commonwealth is not going to reveal that information. It is not going to come clean; it is not going to be honest with the people of Australia about the rival school system it has set up. It is hiding the truth. The commonwealth has come up with a dud model. Whenever the commonwealth does anything it is double the cost of what is done by anyone else. As we now know, it is supported by the opposition’s education spokesperson.
Mr M. McGOWAN replied: I thank the member for the question. Indeed, last week I went to Brisbane and attended the ministerial council with federal minister Hon Andrew Robb, who I found to be a very nice and engaging fellow. At the ministerial council we were able to discuss various issues in training. Of course, I was able to inform the gathering, much to their envy I must say, of Western Australia’s performance in training over the past six years whereby we have nearly doubled the number of apprentices and trainees in the state. We now have around 100 000 people doing courses in our TAFE colleges. Since the last election we have increased the amount of money going towards TAFE colleges by $190 million. In fact, in the last budget we had roughly $50 million of capital injected into TAFE, much of which will be spent in country areas around Western Australia. We have also had the great success of school-based apprenticeships, which have been brought about over the past few years by this government. I expressed some concerns to Minister Robb and to the meeting about the performance of the Australian Technical Colleges that have been established by the commonwealth. Indeed, while advising them that Hon Peter Collier is a supporter of this alternative commonwealth government school system being set up as a rival to the state school system, I was also able to inform them of the views of the former education minister, the member for Cottesloe, Hon Colin Barnett. During parliamentary estimates a couple of weeks ago when we were discussing this issue, Mr Barnett said of the Australian Technical Colleges - It is a very poor policy. I said so at the time. I was able to inform Hon Andrew Robb that a former Liberal Party education minister of five years thought that his technical colleges, the commonwealth’s alternative school system, were very poor policy. I was also able to ask him why, with three years to set them up and national expenditure of around $500 million, we now have 62 students in Australian Technical Colleges in WA. There are two colleges and 62 students; one college, in Port Hedland, has no students - not a single student. It defies belief that the commonwealth would spend $500 million across the country and that in Western Australia, the state driving the Australian economy, 62 students are in these colleges. I put a motion on the books asking the commonwealth to reveal what is the cost per student, what are the attrition rates of these colleges, and all the other financial information that we make available of our state schools and TAFE colleges. Do you know what the answer was, Mr Speaker? No, the commonwealth is not going to reveal that information. It is not going to come clean; it is not going to be honest with the people of Australia about the rival school system it has set up. It is hiding the truth. The commonwealth has come up with a dud model. Whenever the commonwealth does anything it is double the cost of what is done by anyone else. As we now know, it is supported by the opposition’s education spokesperson.
I thank the member for the question. Indeed, last week I went to Brisbane and attended the ministerial council with federal minister Hon Andrew Robb, who I found to be a very nice and engaging fellow. At the ministerial council we were able to discuss various issues in training. Of course, I was able to inform the gathering, much to their envy I must say, of Western Australia’s performance in training over the past six years whereby we have nearly doubled the number of apprentices and trainees in the state. We now have around 100 000 people doing courses in our TAFE colleges. Since the last election we have increased the amount of money going towards TAFE colleges by $190 million. In fact, in the last budget we had roughly $50 million of capital injected into TAFE, much of which will be spent in country areas around Western Australia. We have also had the great success of school-based apprenticeships, which have been brought about over the past few years by this government. I expressed some concerns to Minister Robb and to the meeting about the performance of the Australian Technical Colleges that have been established by the commonwealth. Indeed, while advising them that Hon Peter Collier is a supporter of this alternative commonwealth government school system being set up as a rival to the state school system, I was also able to inform them of the views of the former education minister, the member for Cottesloe, Hon Colin Barnett. During parliamentary estimates a couple of weeks ago when we were discussing this issue, Mr Barnett said of the Australian Technical Colleges - It is a very poor policy. I said so at the time. I was able to inform Hon Andrew Robb that a former Liberal Party education minister of five years thought that his technical colleges, the commonwealth’s alternative school system, were very poor policy. I was also able to ask him why, with three years to set them up and national expenditure of around $500 million, we now have 62 students in Australian Technical Colleges in WA. There are two colleges and 62 students; one college, in Port Hedland, has no students - not a single student. It defies belief that the commonwealth would spend $500 million across the country and that in Western Australia, the state driving the Australian economy, 62 students are in these colleges. I put a motion on the books asking the commonwealth to reveal what is the cost per student, what are the attrition rates of these colleges, and all the other financial information that we make available of our state schools and TAFE colleges. Do you know what the answer was, Mr Speaker? No, the commonwealth is not going to reveal that information. It is not going to come clean; it is not going to be honest with the people of Australia about the rival school system it has set up. It is hiding the truth. The commonwealth has come up with a dud model. Whenever the commonwealth does anything it is double the cost of what is done by anyone else. As we now know, it is supported by the opposition’s education spokesperson.
I expressed some concerns to Minister Robb and to the meeting about the performance of the Australian Technical Colleges that have been established by the commonwealth. Indeed, while advising them that Hon Peter Collier is a supporter of this alternative commonwealth government school system being set up as a rival to the state school system, I was also able to inform them of the views of the former education minister, the member for Cottesloe, Hon Colin Barnett. During parliamentary estimates a couple of weeks ago when we were discussing this issue, Mr Barnett said of the Australian Technical Colleges - It is a very poor policy. I said so at the time. I was able to inform Hon Andrew Robb that a former Liberal Party education minister of five years thought that his technical colleges, the commonwealth’s alternative school system, were very poor policy. I was also able to ask him why, with three years to set them up and national expenditure of around $500 million, we now have 62 students in Australian Technical Colleges in WA. There are two colleges and 62 students; one college, in Port Hedland, has no students - not a single student. It defies belief that the commonwealth would spend $500 million across the country and that in Western Australia, the state driving the Australian economy, 62 students are in these colleges. I put a motion on the books asking the commonwealth to reveal what is the cost per student, what are the attrition rates of these colleges, and all the other financial information that we make available of our state schools and TAFE colleges. Do you know what the answer was, Mr Speaker? No, the commonwealth is not going to reveal that information. It is not going to come clean; it is not going to be honest with the people of Australia about the rival school system it has set up. It is hiding the truth. The commonwealth has come up with a dud model. Whenever the commonwealth does anything it is double the cost of what is done by anyone else. As we now know, it is supported by the opposition’s education spokesperson.
Mr M. McGOWAN replied: I thank the member for the question. Indeed, last week I went to Brisbane and attended the ministerial council with federal minister Hon Andrew Robb, who I found to be a very nice and engaging fellow. At the ministerial council we were able to discuss various issues in training. Of course, I was able to inform the gathering, much to their envy I must say, of Western Australia’s performance in training over the past six years whereby we have nearly doubled the number of apprentices and trainees in the state. We now have around 100 000 people doing courses in our TAFE colleges. Since the last election we have increased the amount of money going towards TAFE colleges by $190 million. In fact, in the last budget we had roughly $50 million of capital injected into TAFE, much of which will be spent in country areas around Western Australia. We have also had the great success of school-based apprenticeships, which have been brought about over the past few years by this government. I expressed some concerns to Minister Robb and to the meeting about the performance of the Australian Technical Colleges that have been established by the commonwealth. Indeed, while advising them that Hon Peter Collier is a supporter of this alternative commonwealth government school system being set up as a rival to the state school system, I was also able to inform them of the views of the former education minister, the member for Cottesloe, Hon Colin Barnett. During parliamentary estimates a couple of weeks ago when we were discussing this issue, Mr Barnett said of the Australian Technical Colleges - It is a very poor policy. I said so at the time. I was able to inform Hon Andrew Robb that a former Liberal Party education minister of five years thought that his technical colleges, the commonwealth’s alternative school system, were very poor policy. I was also able to ask him why, with three years to set them up and national expenditure of around $500 million, we now have 62 students in Australian Technical Colleges in WA. There are two colleges and 62 students; one college, in Port Hedland, has no students - not a single student. It defies belief that the commonwealth would spend $500 million across the country and that in Western Australia, the state driving the Australian economy, 62 students are in these colleges. I put a motion on the books asking the commonwealth to reveal what is the cost per student, what are the attrition rates of these colleges, and all the other financial information that we make available of our state schools and TAFE colleges. Do you know what the answer was, Mr Speaker? No, the commonwealth is not going to reveal that information. It is not going to come clean; it is not going to be honest with the people of Australia about the rival school system it has set up. It is hiding the truth. The commonwealth has come up with a dud model. Whenever the commonwealth does anything it is double the cost of what is done by anyone else. As we now know, it is supported by the opposition’s education spokesperson.
I thank the member for the question. Indeed, last week I went to Brisbane and attended the ministerial council with federal minister Hon Andrew Robb, who I found to be a very nice and engaging fellow. At the ministerial council we were able to discuss various issues in training. Of course, I was able to inform the gathering, much to their envy I must say, of Western Australia’s performance in training over the past six years whereby we have nearly doubled the number of apprentices and trainees in the state. We now have around 100 000 people doing courses in our TAFE colleges. Since the last election we have increased the amount of money going towards TAFE colleges by $190 million. In fact, in the last budget we had roughly $50 million of capital injected into TAFE, much of which will be spent in country areas around Western Australia. We have also had the great success of school-based apprenticeships, which have been brought about over the past few years by this government. I expressed some concerns to Minister Robb and to the meeting about the performance of the Australian Technical Colleges that have been established by the commonwealth. Indeed, while advising them that Hon Peter Collier is a supporter of this alternative commonwealth government school system being set up as a rival to the state school system, I was also able to inform them of the views of the former education minister, the member for Cottesloe, Hon Colin Barnett. During parliamentary estimates a couple of weeks ago when we were discussing this issue, Mr Barnett said of the Australian Technical Colleges - It is a very poor policy. I said so at the time. I was able to inform Hon Andrew Robb that a former Liberal Party education minister of five years thought that his technical colleges, the commonwealth’s alternative school system, were very poor policy. I was also able to ask him why, with three years to set them up and national expenditure of around $500 million, we now have 62 students in Australian Technical Colleges in WA. There are two colleges and 62 students; one college, in Port Hedland, has no students - not a single student. It defies belief that the commonwealth would spend $500 million across the country and that in Western Australia, the state driving the Australian economy, 62 students are in these colleges. I put a motion on the books asking the commonwealth to reveal what is the cost per student, what are the attrition rates of these colleges, and all the other financial information that we make available of our state schools and TAFE colleges. Do you know what the answer was, Mr Speaker? No, the commonwealth is not going to reveal that information. It is not going to come clean; it is not going to be honest with the people of Australia about the rival school system it has set up. It is hiding the truth. The commonwealth has come up with a dud model. Whenever the commonwealth does anything it is double the cost of what is done by anyone else. As we now know, it is supported by the opposition’s education spokesperson.
I expressed some concerns to Minister Robb and to the meeting about the performance of the Australian Technical Colleges that have been established by the commonwealth. Indeed, while advising them that Hon Peter Collier is a supporter of this alternative commonwealth government school system being set up as a rival to the state school system, I was also able to inform them of the views of the former education minister, the member for Cottesloe, Hon Colin Barnett. During parliamentary estimates a couple of weeks ago when we were discussing this issue, Mr Barnett said of the Australian Technical Colleges - It is a very poor policy. I said so at the time. I was able to inform Hon Andrew Robb that a former Liberal Party education minister of five years thought that his technical colleges, the commonwealth’s alternative school system, were very poor policy. I was also able to ask him why, with three years to set them up and national expenditure of around $500 million, we now have 62 students in Australian Technical Colleges in WA. There are two colleges and 62 students; one college, in Port Hedland, has no students - not a single student. It defies belief that the commonwealth would spend $500 million across the country and that in Western Australia, the state driving the Australian economy, 62 students are in these colleges. I put a motion on the books asking the commonwealth to reveal what is the cost per student, what are the attrition rates of these colleges, and all the other financial information that we make available of our state schools and TAFE colleges. Do you know what the answer was, Mr Speaker? No, the commonwealth is not going to reveal that information. It is not going to come clean; it is not going to be honest with the people of Australia about the rival school system it has set up. It is hiding the truth. The commonwealth has come up with a dud model. Whenever the commonwealth does anything it is double the cost of what is done by anyone else. As we now know, it is supported by the opposition’s education spokesperson.
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