Read Motion I did in Parliament this week in relation to TAFE funding. Technical and Further Education Mr RYAN PARK (Keira) [3.38 p.m.]: Today and in the weeks ahead Labor will continue to hold this Government to account for what it is doing to one of the most world-renowned institutions right across any education sector in the world, the New South Wales TAFE system. TAFE in New South Wales educates more people than go to university; it has provided more opportunities to men and women in every one of our communities than any other education system; and it continues to be the driver and the key education system that provides access to a quality education system to people who need a second chance in education. But what happened just recently? Under the cover of darkness following the delivery of one of the worst Federal budgets this country has seen, what does the New South Wales Government do? The Government quietly—48 hours after the Federal Budget—delivers massive increases in TAFE fees that men, women and disadvantaged young people are forced to pay in communities right across New South Wales. I assure members that, between now and March 2015, Labor will be standing and fighting with those men and women who believe in the fundamentals of a quality TAFE system. We will not stand by and see TAFE destroyed. We will not stand by and see TAFE become an institution that is available only to those who can afford to pay the fees. We will not stand by and watch TAFE destroyed as it has been destroyed in Victoria. We want TAFE to be a strong, robust, quality education provider, but that cannot happen while the Government is ripping millions of dollars out of its budget, charging fees that only the rich can afford and then saying to the rest of those people: If you cannot afford it, get a loan. That is not the way Labor does things; that is not what Labor believes in and I tell those opposite something else—it is not what the community believes in. The men and women of the Labor Party will stand beside those who believe in a strong and robust TAFE system. We will take this fight all the way to March 2015 and beyond.
Posted on: Wed, 28 May 2014 23:55:55 +0000
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