The Northern Territory government has welcomed Prime Minister Tony Abbott's about-face on schools funding, accusing the previous federal Labor government of trying to sabotage its own plan.
Prime Minister Abbott announced on Monday a new in-principle agreement with the NT, Queensland and WA that he says will allow a national funding system to operate.
The three jurisdictions did not sign up to Labor's education funding plan before the election.
After a week of intense political pressure on the issue, Mr Abbott says the federal government will now provide $2.8 billion over four years to all the states and territories, after deciding to return $1.2 billion put into consolidated revenue by the former Labor government.
NT Education Minister Peter Chandler said he was pleased the federal coalition was honouring its election commitment on the funding.
Last week the government confirmed that the NT would receive $67 million for 2014, after making a pre-election promise of delivering $150 over four years, which was a pledge to match Labor's proposed spending over the same period.
"Last week we received certainty in the face of the revelation that Labor ripped the Northern Territory's share of education funding out of the budget just before the election," Mr Chandler said in a statement.
"Today the federal coalition has proved they're committed to a truly national funding agreement by putting the $1.2 billion Labor ripped out back into the budget."
Teachers and their supporters have held a series of protests at the NT Parliament in Darwin over the past few months protesting budget cuts which the government says will see 35 net positions lost.
The Labor opposition insists the real figure is 405 positions, including contract teachers and part-time employees.
