❓ A parliamentary question addresses high apprenticeship dropout rates in the building and construction industry, questioning the Minister on the acceptability of the rate, its potential economic impact, and the relevance of the four-year apprenticeship model. The Minister acknowledges the issue, defends the government's actions, and points to contributing factors.
AnsweredQoN 462Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
In the August edition of Building News there is an editorial by Mr John Dastlik stating that there is currently a 55 per cent drop-out rate from building and construction apprenticeships each year. (1) Does the minister representing the Minister for Education and Training consider this extraordinary figure to be acceptable and is he aware that it is almost twice the industrial average? (2) Would the minister agree that if allowed to remain unchecked, this situation has the potential to disrupt our state’s economic growth? (3) Will the minister concede that the four-year apprenticeship is considered outdated by the industry and the demographic it is trying to attract remains in place only due to union pressure? The SPEAKER : Before I give the call to the minister, I do hope that some notice has been given of this question; if not, it is unwise to ask a question like that without some notice because the member will not get a detailed answer. Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER
AnswerView source ↗
(1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
(1) Does the minister representing the Minister for Education and Training consider this extraordinary figure to be acceptable and is he aware that it is almost twice the industrial average? (2) Would the minister agree that if allowed to remain unchecked, this situation has the potential to disrupt our state’s economic growth? (3) Will the minister concede that the four-year apprenticeship is considered outdated by the industry and the demographic it is trying to attract remains in place only due to union pressure? The SPEAKER : Before I give the call to the minister, I do hope that some notice has been given of this question; if not, it is unwise to ask a question like that without some notice because the member will not get a detailed answer. Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
(2) Would the minister agree that if allowed to remain unchecked, this situation has the potential to disrupt our state’s economic growth? (3) Will the minister concede that the four-year apprenticeship is considered outdated by the industry and the demographic it is trying to attract remains in place only due to union pressure? The SPEAKER : Before I give the call to the minister, I do hope that some notice has been given of this question; if not, it is unwise to ask a question like that without some notice because the member will not get a detailed answer. Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
(3) Will the minister concede that the four-year apprenticeship is considered outdated by the industry and the demographic it is trying to attract remains in place only due to union pressure? The SPEAKER : Before I give the call to the minister, I do hope that some notice has been given of this question; if not, it is unwise to ask a question like that without some notice because the member will not get a detailed answer. Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
The SPEAKER : Before I give the call to the minister, I do hope that some notice has been given of this question; if not, it is unwise to ask a question like that without some notice because the member will not get a detailed answer. Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
(1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
(1) Does the minister representing the Minister for Education and Training consider this extraordinary figure to be acceptable and is he aware that it is almost twice the industrial average? (2) Would the minister agree that if allowed to remain unchecked, this situation has the potential to disrupt our state’s economic growth? (3) Will the minister concede that the four-year apprenticeship is considered outdated by the industry and the demographic it is trying to attract remains in place only due to union pressure? The SPEAKER : Before I give the call to the minister, I do hope that some notice has been given of this question; if not, it is unwise to ask a question like that without some notice because the member will not get a detailed answer. Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
(2) Would the minister agree that if allowed to remain unchecked, this situation has the potential to disrupt our state’s economic growth? (3) Will the minister concede that the four-year apprenticeship is considered outdated by the industry and the demographic it is trying to attract remains in place only due to union pressure? The SPEAKER : Before I give the call to the minister, I do hope that some notice has been given of this question; if not, it is unwise to ask a question like that without some notice because the member will not get a detailed answer. Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
(3) Will the minister concede that the four-year apprenticeship is considered outdated by the industry and the demographic it is trying to attract remains in place only due to union pressure? The SPEAKER : Before I give the call to the minister, I do hope that some notice has been given of this question; if not, it is unwise to ask a question like that without some notice because the member will not get a detailed answer. Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
The SPEAKER : Before I give the call to the minister, I do hope that some notice has been given of this question; if not, it is unwise to ask a question like that without some notice because the member will not get a detailed answer. Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr G.A. WOODHAMS : Some notice has been given, Mr Speaker. Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: (1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
(1)-(3) I am happy to endeavour to answer this question. However, just to put this into context, normally what happens with a question for a minister representing another minister is that it is provided to him, his staff or someone, so that it can be presented to the other minister in order that a response can be prepared. This has not happened in this case. The member for Greenough, being the sort of person he is, did speak to me yesterday when he told me that a question was going to be put on notice, but I have not received that question or any response. However, that fault may have arisen subsequent to his handling of the matter. I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
I am trying to cast my mind back to this issue. It is a very important area for Western Australia. Mr Dastlik made those remarks. During the latter part of the 1990s and spilling over into 2000-01 until the member for Balcatta became the Minister for Education and Training, there was no growth whatsoever in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia; they had been static for a very long time. I put the blame for that in part on the former government, which had a succession of Ministers for Training who had no policy. If anything, the policy was to have no policy. The member for Balcatta tried to boost the number of young people taking up apprenticeships and traineeships. By the time our first term of government had finished, as I recall it there had been a 47 per cent increase in the number of 15 to 17-year-olds in apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. That is a significant figure. The overall percentage growth in the number of people who had gone into apprenticeships and traineeships, including in that age cohort, was more than 40 per cent. We were well above anything else that was happening in the nation. In the building industry there was, and is, a statutory authority called the Building and Construction Industry Training Fund. That is administered by the industry, and its members are appointed by the government. The previous government - I think this is not in dispute - had every intention of bringing that fund to an end . In fact, it had inserted into the legislation a sunset clause that would have seen it die. Dr K.D. Hames : We did that at the request of the industry. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Which part of the industry? Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Dr K.D. Hames interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : In the meantime, no funds were being redistributed from that fund. About 0.18 per cent of the money from every building project is put into that fund. We have revamped the board. There are now industry people involved again, rather than people who are not involved in the industry. There are also representatives from the major building companies, the unions and so on. We have made Ian Hill, the head of the former Department of Training, the chair of the fund. It is functioning well. It is now distributing money to the building industry so that apprentices can be taken on. Some issues are related to that. One issue is that when the commonwealth calculates the payments that it makes to companies to assist the trades, it discounts from those payments the amount of money that the builders have received from the fund. That is, in effect, an attack by the commonwealth government on the objective of the fund. Another issue is the demand that now exists for people who have a skill - not necessarily a ticket, but a skill - because they are being offered a lot of money to work on projects and do the work that would normally be required of a tradesperson. That is a difficulty. Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Another issue that we need to confront - I started this process - is the length of time of apprenticeships. This is also an issue that the member has brought to my attention. Unfortunately the member for Peel is not here, and he may be able to provide me with more information, but there is widespread support for movement on this issue. The four-year apprenticeship model reflects an Industrial Training Act that is 100 years old. The Industrial Training Act reflects the late nineteenth century, when the average apprentice was 13 or 14 years old and there was a maturation process and so on. The four-year model was in part about that, as well as the acquisition of skills. The majority of apprentices now are mature age, so there is a very good argument for shortening the time of apprenticeships. We have started to do that through the school-apprenticeship link and so on, and the current Minister for Education and Training is furthering that move. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I was asked the question without notice. I am trying to give a bit of information. Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Ms S.E. Walker : Just answer the question. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I am. The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
The SPEAKER : Order, members! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The current minister is furthering that objective, I think with broad-based support across industry, and that will deliver great benefits to the economy and this particular industry. I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
I want to provide one final bit of information. Mr Dastlik, for whom I have a lot of time, is either on the BCITF or has a representative on the BCITF. As I was finishing up my time as minister, the BCITF was reassessing the time at which it offered the incentive payments, because rather than make the payments up-front it wanted to encourage completion so that there would be a real incentive for the companies and the apprentices to stay in the regime for the full length of time that is required to obtain the necessary qualifications. So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
So, yes, I agree this is a major issue. A lot of work is being done on this issue, and all parties, including the Master Builders Association of Western Australia and the Housing Industry Association of Western Australia, have a role to play.
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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.