Gillard attempts to steal second without touching

The Minister for Education, Julia Gillard, has revealed today she is attempting to make a dash for second base without even touching first, said Christopher Pyne, Shadow Minister for Education. "Ms Gillard's announcement that she is taking the education revolution to the 'next step' is a cynical effort to shift the focus from the failing elements of this so-called revolution to date," Mr Pyne said. "The Computers in Schools program and the Trades Training Centres are both broken promises. Labor claims them as their biggest achievements," he said. Labor has failed to deliver on their promise of one computer for every child from years 9 to 12. They raised expectations and dashed them in their first few months of their Government. They have refused to release a secret report that details the spiralling costs of the infrastructure, maintenance and support for the computers in schools. These spiralling costs lead to the New South Wales Government refusing to participate in round two of the program. The Minister for Education in South Australia admitted they're just replacing old computers for new computers. The Australian Capital Territory and West Australian Governments are claiming their costs are as much as four dollars for every one federal dollar. The Victorian Government is allowing schools to charge parents for the added costs. This is not a successful program. This is not a revolution. This is a collapsing failed shambles. The Trades Training Centres were promised for 'all Australia's 2650 secondary schools' (in Labor's Election Policy document). This promise has been broken. Schools need to pool funds and share facilities to build anything close to what Labor promised. Ms Gillard today promises reform, but she can't be trusted to deliver. She has too much on her plate. A $500 million program to support teachers sounds promising, but like this Governments other big ideas, it lacks detail. "Australia needs a full time Education Minister who has the focus to complete what is started and deliver what is promised," Mr Pyne said. Media Contact: Adam Howard 0400 414 833