Labor plans Federal School inspectors for every school

A re-elected Labor Government is promising a Federal School Inspector, armed with a clipboard and checklist to visit every single Australian school as part of the new funding model, said the Shadow Minister for Education, Christopher Pyne today. “There is absolutely no justification for the Federal Government to have school inspectors. It would require a sprawling new bureaucracy and could well be a breach of the Australian Constitution,” Mr Pyne said. “Labor’s school funding model is a Trojan horse for the Commonwealth to take over State and non-government schools,” he said. “The Federal Education Minister will have unprecedented new powers to intervene in the day to day operations of schools and the Federal Government will be able to order surprise school inspections to ensure compliance with the Government’s Federal regulations. “This is part of the new regime the Federal Government is attempting to implement, where schools will need to present their plans and open their books for inspection. “The Federal Coalition has enormous concerns over the new powers the Federal Minister will have under this legislation. “Schools simply don’t know what other hidden surprises are contained in this new model. “The process has been rushed, there is a $325 million cut in Commonwealth funding over the next four years and schools will be subject entirely to the regulatory whims of Canberra bureaucrats,” Mr Pyne said. 19 July 2013