❓ FRANCIS BURT LAW EDUCATION PROGRAM ME 932. Hon MICHAEL MISCHIN to the Leader of the House representing the Attorney General: I refer to the Department of Education's advice to the Law Society of Weste
AnsweredQoN 932Legislative Council
Asked
11 October 2018
Member
Portfolio
Leader of the House representing the Attorney General
QuestionView source ↗
FRANCIS BURT LAW
EDUCATION PROGRAM ME
932. Hon MICHAEL MISCHIN to the Leader of the House
representing the Attorney General:
I refer to the Department of
Education's advice to the Law Society of Western Australia that it will
cease funding the Francis Burt Law Education Programme from 1 July 2019.
(1) When did the Attorney General first
become aware of the decision to cease funding?
(2) What has he
done to ensure the continuity of funding from the McGowan state government, and
with what result?
(3) What
representations have been made, and advice given, to him about the funding
issue, and what has been his response? I ask him to table any such
correspondence; and, if he declines, to explain why.
(4) Given that with the passage of the Duties
Amendment (Additional Duty for Foreign Persons) Bill 2018 the McGowan
government will have an additional $123 million in revenue over the next four
years, which is more than it requires to freeze TAFE fees, will the Attorney
General undertake to ensure the reinstatement of the modest $110 000 sought for
the continuation of this important legal education program?
(5) If the
funding is not provided, what does the Attorney General understand to be the
fate of the program?
EDUCATION PROGRAM ME
932. Hon MICHAEL MISCHIN to the Leader of the House
representing the Attorney General:
I refer to the Department of
Education's advice to the Law Society of Western Australia that it will
cease funding the Francis Burt Law Education Programme from 1 July 2019.
(1) When did the Attorney General first
become aware of the decision to cease funding?
(2) What has he
done to ensure the continuity of funding from the McGowan state government, and
with what result?
(3) What
representations have been made, and advice given, to him about the funding
issue, and what has been his response? I ask him to table any such
correspondence; and, if he declines, to explain why.
(4) Given that with the passage of the Duties
Amendment (Additional Duty for Foreign Persons) Bill 2018 the McGowan
government will have an additional $123 million in revenue over the next four
years, which is more than it requires to freeze TAFE fees, will the Attorney
General undertake to ensure the reinstatement of the modest $110 000 sought for
the continuation of this important legal education program?
(5) If the
funding is not provided, what does the Attorney General understand to be the
fate of the program?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1) The Attorney
General became aware prior to April this year that as part of measures to
repair the budget damage left by the previous Liberal–National
government, the Department of Education had advised the Law Society of Western Australia
that funding for the Francis Burt Law Education Programme would not be renewed
beyond its expiry on 30 June 2019.
(2) The Attorney
General wrote to Hon Sue Ellery, MLC, Minister for Education and Training,
about the matter on 9 April 2018 and inquired whether the Department of
Education could provide a seconded teacher to the program in lieu of the
expired funding. The minister advised that should the Law Society secure
alternative funding to cover the salary cost of a teacher, the department would
be willing to investigate the possibility of a teacher secondment. Any decision
to reinstate the expired funding would be a matter for Hon Sue Ellery, MLC,
Minister for Education and Training, and this part of the question should be
directed to her.
Several members interjected.
The PRESIDENT : Order!
Hon Martin Aldridge : Is this
not your answer?
Hon SUE ELLERY : It is his
answer.
(3) From a search
taken within the time available, the Attorney General received a verbal
representation from the president of the Law Society, Ms Hayley Cormann, and a letter
from Mr Matt Keogh, federal member for Burt. I table the attached
correspondence.
[See paper 2044.]
(4) The
honourable member would need to direct this query to Hon Sue Ellery, MLC,
Minister for Education and Training, as the Francis Burt Law Education
Programme has been funded by the Department for Education.
(5) The Attorney
General has not been advised by the Law Society of its plans for the program
beyond 30 June 2019.
some notice of the question.
(1) The Attorney
General became aware prior to April this year that as part of measures to
repair the budget damage left by the previous Liberal–National
government, the Department of Education had advised the Law Society of Western Australia
that funding for the Francis Burt Law Education Programme would not be renewed
beyond its expiry on 30 June 2019.
(2) The Attorney
General wrote to Hon Sue Ellery, MLC, Minister for Education and Training,
about the matter on 9 April 2018 and inquired whether the Department of
Education could provide a seconded teacher to the program in lieu of the
expired funding. The minister advised that should the Law Society secure
alternative funding to cover the salary cost of a teacher, the department would
be willing to investigate the possibility of a teacher secondment. Any decision
to reinstate the expired funding would be a matter for Hon Sue Ellery, MLC,
Minister for Education and Training, and this part of the question should be
directed to her.
Several members interjected.
The PRESIDENT : Order!
Hon Martin Aldridge : Is this
not your answer?
Hon SUE ELLERY : It is his
answer.
(3) From a search
taken within the time available, the Attorney General received a verbal
representation from the president of the Law Society, Ms Hayley Cormann, and a letter
from Mr Matt Keogh, federal member for Burt. I table the attached
correspondence.
[See paper 2044.]
(4) The
honourable member would need to direct this query to Hon Sue Ellery, MLC,
Minister for Education and Training, as the Francis Burt Law Education
Programme has been funded by the Department for Education.
(5) The Attorney
General has not been advised by the Law Society of its plans for the program
beyond 30 June 2019.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.