❓ The Minister for Education and Training provides a positive update on the impact of the Government's education policies, highlighting reduced school fees, smaller class sizes, and increased teacher recruitment and retention.
AnsweredQoN 439Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Will the minister please provide an update to the House on whether the Government’s education policies have had any impact on the start of the school year? Mr A.J. CARPENTER
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Bunbury for the question and for his continued advocacy for his constituents on the issue of education. The answer to his question is yes, there has been an impact as a result of our policies, and it is all positive. I am very pleased to announce that this year we had one of the smoothest starts to a school year that we have ever had. I cast my mind back to last year in the Parliament when the predictions were that all hell would break loose in our schools this year because of the Government’s policy on school fees. We are in a very interesting situation now with the Government’s position on school fees and the Opposition’s position on school fees. One thing the Government has done is to ensure that the fee burden on parents is alleviated. The Government has not only made school fees for years 8 to 10 non-compulsory but also provided $100 fee relief for every high school student in Western Australia. As far as I am aware, this is the first time that any State Government in Australia has effectively reduced school fees. In fact, for years 8 to 10 the Government has effectively reduced the fees by 40 per cent. Contrast that with the situation under the previous Government, which I believe increased primary school fees, and I remind the Chamber that it maintained those fees as voluntary fees. There was no anticipation that it would cause mayhem when the previous Government increased those fees from $9 to $63, and I believe school fees for high school students rose from $215 to $235. The previous Government put up fees. It had compulsory fees at high school level and non-compulsory fees at primary school level. The previous Government had no concern about confusion and mayhem then. In contrast with the previous Government raising the fees, the current Government lowered the fees. Because of the reduced class sizes, with years 1 to 3 going from 28 to 24 students, the Government had to find a large number of additional teachers. In fact, across the system the Government had to recruit in the vicinity of 2 000 teachers this year. I ask the member for Churchlands whether we had any problems doing it. We had none whatsoever. In fact, at the end of the process, more graduates were looking for positions in schools than we were able to place. We placed several hundred new graduates, but unfortunately we could not place them all. I will tell the House why. It is because the status of education in Western Australia right now, for the first time in a decade, is going up. People want to get into the system. Under the previous Government, for all the efforts that it made, or said it made, people wanted to get out of it, and the prediction was that there would be a dramatic exodus from the system of people aged 45 years and older. Now, more young people than we can accommodate are trying to get into the system. That is a great thing. This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for Bunbury for the question and for his continued advocacy for his constituents on the issue of education. The answer to his question is yes, there has been an impact as a result of our policies, and it is all positive. I am very pleased to announce that this year we had one of the smoothest starts to a school year that we have ever had. I cast my mind back to last year in the Parliament when the predictions were that all hell would break loose in our schools this year because of the Government’s policy on school fees. We are in a very interesting situation now with the Government’s position on school fees and the Opposition’s position on school fees. One thing the Government has done is to ensure that the fee burden on parents is alleviated. The Government has not only made school fees for years 8 to 10 non-compulsory but also provided $100 fee relief for every high school student in Western Australia. As far as I am aware, this is the first time that any State Government in Australia has effectively reduced school fees. In fact, for years 8 to 10 the Government has effectively reduced the fees by 40 per cent. Contrast that with the situation under the previous Government, which I believe increased primary school fees, and I remind the Chamber that it maintained those fees as voluntary fees. There was no anticipation that it would cause mayhem when the previous Government increased those fees from $9 to $63, and I believe school fees for high school students rose from $215 to $235. The previous Government put up fees. It had compulsory fees at high school level and non-compulsory fees at primary school level. The previous Government had no concern about confusion and mayhem then. In contrast with the previous Government raising the fees, the current Government lowered the fees. Because of the reduced class sizes, with years 1 to 3 going from 28 to 24 students, the Government had to find a large number of additional teachers. In fact, across the system the Government had to recruit in the vicinity of 2 000 teachers this year. I ask the member for Churchlands whether we had any problems doing it. We had none whatsoever. In fact, at the end of the process, more graduates were looking for positions in schools than we were able to place. We placed several hundred new graduates, but unfortunately we could not place them all. I will tell the House why. It is because the status of education in Western Australia right now, for the first time in a decade, is going up. People want to get into the system. Under the previous Government, for all the efforts that it made, or said it made, people wanted to get out of it, and the prediction was that there would be a dramatic exodus from the system of people aged 45 years and older. Now, more young people than we can accommodate are trying to get into the system. That is a great thing. This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
I thank the member for Bunbury for the question and for his continued advocacy for his constituents on the issue of education. The answer to his question is yes, there has been an impact as a result of our policies, and it is all positive. I am very pleased to announce that this year we had one of the smoothest starts to a school year that we have ever had. I cast my mind back to last year in the Parliament when the predictions were that all hell would break loose in our schools this year because of the Government’s policy on school fees. We are in a very interesting situation now with the Government’s position on school fees and the Opposition’s position on school fees. One thing the Government has done is to ensure that the fee burden on parents is alleviated. The Government has not only made school fees for years 8 to 10 non-compulsory but also provided $100 fee relief for every high school student in Western Australia. As far as I am aware, this is the first time that any State Government in Australia has effectively reduced school fees. In fact, for years 8 to 10 the Government has effectively reduced the fees by 40 per cent. Contrast that with the situation under the previous Government, which I believe increased primary school fees, and I remind the Chamber that it maintained those fees as voluntary fees. There was no anticipation that it would cause mayhem when the previous Government increased those fees from $9 to $63, and I believe school fees for high school students rose from $215 to $235. The previous Government put up fees. It had compulsory fees at high school level and non-compulsory fees at primary school level. The previous Government had no concern about confusion and mayhem then. In contrast with the previous Government raising the fees, the current Government lowered the fees. Because of the reduced class sizes, with years 1 to 3 going from 28 to 24 students, the Government had to find a large number of additional teachers. In fact, across the system the Government had to recruit in the vicinity of 2 000 teachers this year. I ask the member for Churchlands whether we had any problems doing it. We had none whatsoever. In fact, at the end of the process, more graduates were looking for positions in schools than we were able to place. We placed several hundred new graduates, but unfortunately we could not place them all. I will tell the House why. It is because the status of education in Western Australia right now, for the first time in a decade, is going up. People want to get into the system. Under the previous Government, for all the efforts that it made, or said it made, people wanted to get out of it, and the prediction was that there would be a dramatic exodus from the system of people aged 45 years and older. Now, more young people than we can accommodate are trying to get into the system. That is a great thing. This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Contrast that with the situation under the previous Government, which I believe increased primary school fees, and I remind the Chamber that it maintained those fees as voluntary fees. There was no anticipation that it would cause mayhem when the previous Government increased those fees from $9 to $63, and I believe school fees for high school students rose from $215 to $235. The previous Government put up fees. It had compulsory fees at high school level and non-compulsory fees at primary school level. The previous Government had no concern about confusion and mayhem then. In contrast with the previous Government raising the fees, the current Government lowered the fees. Because of the reduced class sizes, with years 1 to 3 going from 28 to 24 students, the Government had to find a large number of additional teachers. In fact, across the system the Government had to recruit in the vicinity of 2 000 teachers this year. I ask the member for Churchlands whether we had any problems doing it. We had none whatsoever. In fact, at the end of the process, more graduates were looking for positions in schools than we were able to place. We placed several hundred new graduates, but unfortunately we could not place them all. I will tell the House why. It is because the status of education in Western Australia right now, for the first time in a decade, is going up. People want to get into the system. Under the previous Government, for all the efforts that it made, or said it made, people wanted to get out of it, and the prediction was that there would be a dramatic exodus from the system of people aged 45 years and older. Now, more young people than we can accommodate are trying to get into the system. That is a great thing. This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Because of the reduced class sizes, with years 1 to 3 going from 28 to 24 students, the Government had to find a large number of additional teachers. In fact, across the system the Government had to recruit in the vicinity of 2 000 teachers this year. I ask the member for Churchlands whether we had any problems doing it. We had none whatsoever. In fact, at the end of the process, more graduates were looking for positions in schools than we were able to place. We placed several hundred new graduates, but unfortunately we could not place them all. I will tell the House why. It is because the status of education in Western Australia right now, for the first time in a decade, is going up. People want to get into the system. Under the previous Government, for all the efforts that it made, or said it made, people wanted to get out of it, and the prediction was that there would be a dramatic exodus from the system of people aged 45 years and older. Now, more young people than we can accommodate are trying to get into the system. That is a great thing. This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for Bunbury for the question and for his continued advocacy for his constituents on the issue of education. The answer to his question is yes, there has been an impact as a result of our policies, and it is all positive. I am very pleased to announce that this year we had one of the smoothest starts to a school year that we have ever had. I cast my mind back to last year in the Parliament when the predictions were that all hell would break loose in our schools this year because of the Government’s policy on school fees. We are in a very interesting situation now with the Government’s position on school fees and the Opposition’s position on school fees. One thing the Government has done is to ensure that the fee burden on parents is alleviated. The Government has not only made school fees for years 8 to 10 non-compulsory but also provided $100 fee relief for every high school student in Western Australia. As far as I am aware, this is the first time that any State Government in Australia has effectively reduced school fees. In fact, for years 8 to 10 the Government has effectively reduced the fees by 40 per cent. Contrast that with the situation under the previous Government, which I believe increased primary school fees, and I remind the Chamber that it maintained those fees as voluntary fees. There was no anticipation that it would cause mayhem when the previous Government increased those fees from $9 to $63, and I believe school fees for high school students rose from $215 to $235. The previous Government put up fees. It had compulsory fees at high school level and non-compulsory fees at primary school level. The previous Government had no concern about confusion and mayhem then. In contrast with the previous Government raising the fees, the current Government lowered the fees. Because of the reduced class sizes, with years 1 to 3 going from 28 to 24 students, the Government had to find a large number of additional teachers. In fact, across the system the Government had to recruit in the vicinity of 2 000 teachers this year. I ask the member for Churchlands whether we had any problems doing it. We had none whatsoever. In fact, at the end of the process, more graduates were looking for positions in schools than we were able to place. We placed several hundred new graduates, but unfortunately we could not place them all. I will tell the House why. It is because the status of education in Western Australia right now, for the first time in a decade, is going up. People want to get into the system. Under the previous Government, for all the efforts that it made, or said it made, people wanted to get out of it, and the prediction was that there would be a dramatic exodus from the system of people aged 45 years and older. Now, more young people than we can accommodate are trying to get into the system. That is a great thing. This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
I thank the member for Bunbury for the question and for his continued advocacy for his constituents on the issue of education. The answer to his question is yes, there has been an impact as a result of our policies, and it is all positive. I am very pleased to announce that this year we had one of the smoothest starts to a school year that we have ever had. I cast my mind back to last year in the Parliament when the predictions were that all hell would break loose in our schools this year because of the Government’s policy on school fees. We are in a very interesting situation now with the Government’s position on school fees and the Opposition’s position on school fees. One thing the Government has done is to ensure that the fee burden on parents is alleviated. The Government has not only made school fees for years 8 to 10 non-compulsory but also provided $100 fee relief for every high school student in Western Australia. As far as I am aware, this is the first time that any State Government in Australia has effectively reduced school fees. In fact, for years 8 to 10 the Government has effectively reduced the fees by 40 per cent. Contrast that with the situation under the previous Government, which I believe increased primary school fees, and I remind the Chamber that it maintained those fees as voluntary fees. There was no anticipation that it would cause mayhem when the previous Government increased those fees from $9 to $63, and I believe school fees for high school students rose from $215 to $235. The previous Government put up fees. It had compulsory fees at high school level and non-compulsory fees at primary school level. The previous Government had no concern about confusion and mayhem then. In contrast with the previous Government raising the fees, the current Government lowered the fees. Because of the reduced class sizes, with years 1 to 3 going from 28 to 24 students, the Government had to find a large number of additional teachers. In fact, across the system the Government had to recruit in the vicinity of 2 000 teachers this year. I ask the member for Churchlands whether we had any problems doing it. We had none whatsoever. In fact, at the end of the process, more graduates were looking for positions in schools than we were able to place. We placed several hundred new graduates, but unfortunately we could not place them all. I will tell the House why. It is because the status of education in Western Australia right now, for the first time in a decade, is going up. People want to get into the system. Under the previous Government, for all the efforts that it made, or said it made, people wanted to get out of it, and the prediction was that there would be a dramatic exodus from the system of people aged 45 years and older. Now, more young people than we can accommodate are trying to get into the system. That is a great thing. This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Contrast that with the situation under the previous Government, which I believe increased primary school fees, and I remind the Chamber that it maintained those fees as voluntary fees. There was no anticipation that it would cause mayhem when the previous Government increased those fees from $9 to $63, and I believe school fees for high school students rose from $215 to $235. The previous Government put up fees. It had compulsory fees at high school level and non-compulsory fees at primary school level. The previous Government had no concern about confusion and mayhem then. In contrast with the previous Government raising the fees, the current Government lowered the fees. Because of the reduced class sizes, with years 1 to 3 going from 28 to 24 students, the Government had to find a large number of additional teachers. In fact, across the system the Government had to recruit in the vicinity of 2 000 teachers this year. I ask the member for Churchlands whether we had any problems doing it. We had none whatsoever. In fact, at the end of the process, more graduates were looking for positions in schools than we were able to place. We placed several hundred new graduates, but unfortunately we could not place them all. I will tell the House why. It is because the status of education in Western Australia right now, for the first time in a decade, is going up. People want to get into the system. Under the previous Government, for all the efforts that it made, or said it made, people wanted to get out of it, and the prediction was that there would be a dramatic exodus from the system of people aged 45 years and older. Now, more young people than we can accommodate are trying to get into the system. That is a great thing. This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Because of the reduced class sizes, with years 1 to 3 going from 28 to 24 students, the Government had to find a large number of additional teachers. In fact, across the system the Government had to recruit in the vicinity of 2 000 teachers this year. I ask the member for Churchlands whether we had any problems doing it. We had none whatsoever. In fact, at the end of the process, more graduates were looking for positions in schools than we were able to place. We placed several hundred new graduates, but unfortunately we could not place them all. I will tell the House why. It is because the status of education in Western Australia right now, for the first time in a decade, is going up. People want to get into the system. Under the previous Government, for all the efforts that it made, or said it made, people wanted to get out of it, and the prediction was that there would be a dramatic exodus from the system of people aged 45 years and older. Now, more young people than we can accommodate are trying to get into the system. That is a great thing. This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
This Government has done great things for education. Last year in Western Australia, for the first time in 10 years, there was a significant increase in the retention rate to year 12. For all the other time, it was on its way down, bumping along at 59 or 60 per cent. Last year the rate jumped up. This Government has reduced school fees and class sizes, and it has provided an option for parents of children in years 8 to 10 who cannot afford to go to court, which is what would have happened. I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
I raise this question for the general interest of the Parliament: what is the policy of the Opposition on school fees now? The member for Mitchell, in one of his moments of insanity, or whatever one might call it, when he was advocating that only people who had rocks in their heads would bother to pay, said that the Liberal Party would seriously consider having no school fees - schooling would be free. The current Government would love to do that, but it knows the reality. The Leader of the Opposition restated his preference for compulsory school fees. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition said that there should be no school fees, the Leader of the Opposition said that people should pay, and the member for Darling Range, the shadow Minister for Education, probably supports me - a more sensible position. Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Mr J.L. Bradshaw: What about university union fees? Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Dr G.I. Gallop: Minister, just be quiet. We heard someone from the Opposition! I have been waiting all question time! Opposition members have gone missing in action. Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER: This is the first day back in Parliament. There is a whole range of issues to be considered. This has been the most lame performance of an Opposition that I can remember. In the 10 years that I was in the press gallery and in the six years I have been in this Chamber, I have never seen a more pathetic performance. The Minister for the Environment and Heritage has killed them - absolutely killed them.
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