❓ Opposition asks what the WA Education Minister will do to ensure continued federal funding for kindergarten programs, following comments from the federal minister suggesting it's a state responsibility. The WA minister acknowledges the issue's seriousness and states the WA government is doing all it can to secure funding.
AnsweredQoN 855Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
KINDERGARTENS
— FEDERAL FUNDING
855. Hon SUE ELLERY to the Minister for
Education:
I refer to the statement by the
federal Minister for Education in Perth yesterday when asked whether his
government would continue funding the four hours per week for kindergarten
students. He said that kindergartens were the responsibility of the state
government and therefore that question should probably be addressed to Hon
Peter Collier.
What will the WA Minister for
Education do next to ensure that the Abbott Liberal government does continue
funding for early education and that the WA government does not proceed to make
more cuts to education to fund the gap?
— FEDERAL FUNDING
855. Hon SUE ELLERY to the Minister for
Education:
I refer to the statement by the
federal Minister for Education in Perth yesterday when asked whether his
government would continue funding the four hours per week for kindergarten
students. He said that kindergartens were the responsibility of the state
government and therefore that question should probably be addressed to Hon
Peter Collier.
What will the WA Minister for
Education do next to ensure that the Abbott Liberal government does continue
funding for early education and that the WA government does not proceed to make
more cuts to education to fund the gap?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for the question
and I also thank Hon Christopher Pyne for his comment!
Hon Ken Travers : You know you are not allowed to mislead
the house!
Hon PETER COLLIER : No! I do not mean to be flippant because
it is a very serious issue and I think the federal government needs to
understand and appreciate how serious it is. We have universal access to 15
hours of kindergarten provided for our students throughout Western Australia—11
hours provided through the state government and four hours through the federal
government. At this stage the federal government has not committed to
continuing that funding post the end of December 2014, which is disappointing to
me and to my state and territory colleagues throughout the nation. We voiced
those concerns quite robustly in the teleconference last Friday and Ministers
Pyne and Ley received that unambiguous message quite, dare I say it, sincerely.
They appreciate where we are coming from in terms of the fact that we have
issues here that we have to deal with. In Western Australia, for example, 30 000
students will be affected by a decision of the federal government. In addition
to that, about 280 staff and about 140 education assistants will be affected.
Suffice it to say that the Western Australian government is doing all it
possibly can to access those funds and to get the federal government to commit
to maintaining those funds post 30 December 2014. If not, we will have to find
a way to fund those additional hours. I cannot say any more than that, but
suffice it to say that we are intent on ensuring that those hours are provided
for kindergartens throughout Western Australia.
and I also thank Hon Christopher Pyne for his comment!
Hon Ken Travers : You know you are not allowed to mislead
the house!
Hon PETER COLLIER : No! I do not mean to be flippant because
it is a very serious issue and I think the federal government needs to
understand and appreciate how serious it is. We have universal access to 15
hours of kindergarten provided for our students throughout Western Australia—11
hours provided through the state government and four hours through the federal
government. At this stage the federal government has not committed to
continuing that funding post the end of December 2014, which is disappointing to
me and to my state and territory colleagues throughout the nation. We voiced
those concerns quite robustly in the teleconference last Friday and Ministers
Pyne and Ley received that unambiguous message quite, dare I say it, sincerely.
They appreciate where we are coming from in terms of the fact that we have
issues here that we have to deal with. In Western Australia, for example, 30 000
students will be affected by a decision of the federal government. In addition
to that, about 280 staff and about 140 education assistants will be affected.
Suffice it to say that the Western Australian government is doing all it
possibly can to access those funds and to get the federal government to commit
to maintaining those funds post 30 December 2014. If not, we will have to find
a way to fund those additional hours. I cannot say any more than that, but
suffice it to say that we are intent on ensuring that those hours are provided
for kindergartens throughout Western Australia.
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