Labor education funding disarray continues

Labor’s education changes remain in disarray despite the Tasmanian Labor Government agreeing to participate today, said the Shadow Minister for Education, Christopher Pyne. “Federal Labor has abandoned a national school funding formula for all schools, instead the Tasmanian Government will allocate funding under their existing state model,” Mr Pyne said. “This is in line with reports that the non-government school systems will not use the Federal Government’s new formula either,” he said. “Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings has also previously raised concerns about the unprecedented new power of the Federal Education Minister to intervene in the operation of schools, but obviously today the Premier is prepared to surrender that power to the Commonwealth. “However, what remains unclear is how much additional funding schools can expect in the next three years. “Only the Coalition can give an ironclad guarantee that school fees will not go up as a result of changes to school funding. “We can also guarantee that over the next four years, schools will be $325 million better off under the Coalition. “In New South Wales alone the Independent Schools Council has identified 63 schools that would lose under Labor’s school funding changes, many in regional areas. “For these parents, school fees may well rise. This is a huge concern for families under cost of living pressure. “As it stands, three States and one Territory still have not agreed to the school funding changes failing to reach a national agreement with six days remaining before the deadline expires,” Mr Pyne said. 9 July 2013