Speech: We are Proudly the Party of Public Education

2018-11-27

The Greens are proudly the party of public education. We are unapologetic in our advocacy for a well-resourced, world-class public education system. I'm proud to have announced the Greens plan to ensure that every public school is to be fully funded. We must make sure that every public school receives 100 per cent of the Schooling Resource Standard by 2023 and has the capital funds to build the learning and teaching facilities that are needed, and that funding cuts for students with disability are reversed. And we must also reverse the deals with the private schools, struck disgustingly by the Liberals, which Labor doesn't have the guts to cancel. It's simple: with public money, the 2.5 million children in public schools have to come first, and the Greens will always stand by them.

Motion

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

        (i) the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS) is an estimate of how much total public funding a school needs to meet the educational needs of its students, as recommended by the 2011 Gonski Review of Funding for Schooling, and

        (ii) under current policy settings, 87% of public schools will still be underfunded in 2023; and

(b) calls on all parties to commit to 100% SRS funding for public schools.

HANSARD LINK