We might be a diverse nation, but only one of our 150 federal electorates is home to a majority of foreign-born Australians. It’s the electorate of Bruce in south-eastern Melbourne; arguably the most multicultural electorate in Australia. This little slice of suburbia is a truly unique part of the world.
As Labor’s candidate for Bruce at the federal election, I’ve spent the last 12 months knocking on more than 12,000 doors and talking with thousands of residents. You learn a lot from door-knocking, and you hear about all sorts of issues. But the overwhelming concern for people of all ages and backgrounds is education.
The right of every Australian to access a quality education – no matter their postcode or their family wealth - is the cornerstone of our social and democratic traditions. Education is indeed the key to our future economic prosperity.
“People want a great education so that they can provide better lives for their families. It’s a key reason why so many people choose to make a new life here in Australia. Parents know that the greatest gift they can give their children is an education.”
Australians are blessed with great opportunities, but we’re a relatively small nation in a fast-growing region of more than four billion people. We have to be ambitious, bold and intelligent if we want to maintain our position as a high-skill, high-wage economy.
The truth is Australian schools are not keeping up with our competitors. According to Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) data, in the year 2000 only one country outperformed Australia in reading and maths, and in 2006 only two countries outrated us in science.
Today, 16 countries outperform Australia in maths, nine countries outperform Australia in reading, and seven countries outperform Australia in science. It’s a worrying trend.
As we get ready to go to the polls, Australians have a clear choice. The Prime Minister is cutting $29 billion of funding to schools over the next 10 years and has proposed cutting all funding for public schools across Australia.
But Labor believes the quality of education should never be decided by postcode or wealth. Students deserve a system that provides the individual support they need to reach their full potential, and only Labor has a plan for this.
Labor’s $36 billion investment for every student will see every child in every school funded on the basis of need – whether it’s a government, Catholic or independent school. Labor will set tough targets in the areas of maths, science and literacy, and support schools to increase Year 12 completion rates.
And it’s not just schools under attack. The Liberals also want to cut $12 billion from higher education and deregulate higher education fees. Under the Liberals, $100,000-plus degrees will become a reality. This will leave students with a lifetime of debt, or keep others out of study altogether. The Liberals want to Americanise our universities, and force students to pay more, or miss out.
Labor has a positive, sustainable plan to invest in our universities and our future. Labor will introduce a Student Funding Guarantee to ensure all Australians have the skills and knowledge they need for the jobs of the future. The Liberals’ only plan for education is to cut funding and make students pay more, or miss out altogether.
People want a great education so that they can provide better lives for their families. It’s a key reason why so many people choose to make a new life here in Australia. Parents know that the greatest gift they can give their children is an education.
Elections are about choices and priorities, and we all have an important decision to make on July 2. In contrast to Labor, the Liberals’ only plan for education is to cut funding and make students pay more, or miss out. It’s not a question of whether we can afford to invest in an education system, but whether we can afford not to.
Labor’s positive policies will help us regain our status among the world’s best when it comes to education, and provide the critical foundation for our future prosperity.
