Government Schools (Infrastructure Register) Bill 2007

Debate resumed from 8 November 2007.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE (Lismore) [10.23 a.m.]: I support the Government Schools (Infrastructure Register) Bill 2007. At the outset I thank the Leader of The Nationals, shadow Minister for Education, and member for Oxley, Andrew Stoner, for introducing the bill. The object of the bill is to establish a requirement for the Director General of the Department of Education and Training, who is referred to in the bill as the director general, to keep an infrastructure register in relation to government schools. The register is to comprise reports on the status of the capital infrastructure of government schools, which will be known as school status reports, and three-yearly plans on building and maintenance work in those schools, which will be known as school building plans. School status reports and school building plans are to be prepared by the director general and included on the website of the Department of Education and Training.

To highlight the problems faced by schools today and the impact of those problems upon the parents and citizens committee, groups and families, I cite an application by the Wyrallah Road Public School in 2001 for school improvements. The proposed school improvements included major shelter provision, covered walkways, air-conditioning in all school buildings, a modern technology laboratory, a major playground centre and environmental improvements across the whole school. In May 2001 I visited the school and met the parents and citizens committee as well as the school staff. I explained to those present that there is a process for dealing with the applications for school improvements. Following that meeting, I contacted the school services unit and the asset management directorate of the Department of Education and Training. The Wyrallah Road Public School parents and citizens committee presented the school's problems to the directorate and discovered that although the application had been lodged in 1994, it had been classified as needing to be reviewed and prioritised. In 2001 the directorate advised me to visit the school, inspect the conditions and make official representations to the Minister for Education and Training. In 2004 I received an email from the then principal of the school that stated:

Yes, Wyrallah [Road Public School's] request for the provision of a hall has been noted by the Department and funding will be considered in the context of future capital works priorities.

It was pointed out to the asset management directorate by the principal that the school has 19 classes and that 2004 projections showed the school will not get any smaller in the near future. The school was on the move in 2004 and that pace has continued to the present. The school badly needs a multipurpose unit. The principal requested the asset management directorate, the school community and me to join forces and make the multipurpose unit a reality. In September 2005 I attended the fiftieth anniversary celebrations of the Wyrallah Road Public School and again many families approached me regarding the provision of the multipurpose centre. After discussions with the new parents and citizens committee, whom I had not met previously, I pointed out that the improvements were not yet listed as a priority by the asset management directorate. They asked whether I was sure about that and I replied that I was positive. The parents and citizens committee wrote to me to confirm what I told them. The letter states:

Confirming your information and, to our surprise, that the Wyrallah Road Public School's previous application for a hall has not reached initial submission stage yet.

I point out to the House that despite a clear need for improvements in the school being shown in 1994, by 2005 the school's request was yet to be classified as a priority by the Department of Education and Training. So the Wyrallah Road Public School Committee, parents and friends and the school community had thought they were well and truly on the process. This highlights the need to have a register to which people can refer to verify their place on the list. Thank goodness for the Federal Government investing in our schools programs. There have been a lot of representations made to me over the last few years by schools such as Wyrallah Road Public School that have been supported by the Federal Government investing in our schools program. This is one example where we need to have a transparent system where schools, parents and citizens and the community can see where they are placed on a register.

Whilst we are talking on the requirements of schools, I raise an issue that has been brought to my attention related to school building plans. The Diocese of Lismore recently approached me. That diocese is responsible for Catholic education from Port Macquarie or Kempsey to the border. The diocese has been trying to build a school at the Macksville East Public School site. Most people would know that I come from a real estate industry background. Under the current law once a property is publicly listed for sale you cannot dictate who is going to buy it.

Ms Angela D'Amore: People selling their property can decide who they are going to sell their property to.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: You cannot decide who is going to buy a property.

Ms Angela D'Amore: They can decide which bid they want.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: You cannot. If you publicly list a house or list a property with a real estate agent you cannot say, "Thomas George cannot buy that property."

Ms Angela D'Amore: The vendor can choose.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: No, the vendor cannot choose who is going to buy a property.

Ms Angela D'Amore: Rubbish!

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: I would ask the member for Drummoyne to check that. If I am wrong I would like to know and I would like it to be pointed out to me.

Mr Richard Amery: We certainly would not let a National buy in our electorate.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: That may be the case. That is probably the reason why you need to move to the country.

Mr Richard Amery: If there is not a law stopping that we would make one.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: I think there are some laws that have been made to suit certain people. The Diocese of Lismore approached the council at Macksville to purchase a block of land that was owned by the Department of Education and Training. Council received this reply from the Department of Education and Training:

I refer to your letter dated 15 December, 2006 concerning the Macksville East Public School site. It is confirmed that the Department is still prepared to proceed with the sale to Council at the previously offered amount of $400,000 plus GST.

They agreed to sell it to the council. On 9 May the council received a further letter from the Department of Education and Training stating:

I refer to previous correspondence between the Department and Council regarding the proposed disposal to Council of the Macksville East Public School site also known as Thistle Park. Under the NSW Government's Total Asset Management Policy, a direct sale to Council can only occur where council intends to use the property for community purposes and not where it intends to resell the property.

The proposed sale to Council can now only proceed if Council is prepared to agree to a restrictive covenant being placed on the title to ensure that the property is only used for community purposes and that it cannot be used for a non-government school purpose.

I cannot believe this.

Mr Richard Amery: It is land that is designated for education purposes. Is that so radical?

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: What is the difference between a government school building and a non-government school building on that site? The Department of Education and Training has said no, it cannot be sold to a non-government school. Forget whether it is the Catholic church or the Anglican church, the Government will not allow a school to be built on the site. As soon as the council offered it to an organisation that would build a school on the site it was withdrawn from the market. I cannot believe this. The Chancery of the diocese of Lismore has written to me and also to the Premier. There has been a precedent set. I believe there is an Al Amana school at Bass Hill that was able to buy an education site and build on it. The Diocese of Lismore wants to build a school, the town needs a school and yet this Government has refused the opportunity for a non-government organisation to build a school. Father Jones from the diocese has again written to the Minister, and I have a copy of that letter. I ask the Minister for Education and Training to reconsider and let the Diocese of Lismore purchase the property to enable it to build a badly needed school for Macksville.

I wish to place on record another matter that may not relate to the bill but certainly relates to education. I wrote to the Minister for Education and Training about a problem at Pearces Creek Public School and I am disgusted that a reply came back informing me that the department had written directly to the school when the representation was made to me—the arrogance of this Government again. It is not only happening in the education department—

Ms Angela D'Amore: Knock on the door. Pick up the phone. Come on!

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: Yes, the arrogance of this Government! There seems to be a new edict that when members of Parliament make representations on behalf of constituents the Government replies directly to the constituent and sends the member a copy of the reply. That is not courtesy. Ministers visit areas and do not advise the local member of their proposed visit. That is the arrogance we have come to know from this Government. You should remember that one day you will be in Opposition—

Mr Richard Amery: Not while you are over there, Thomas.

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: No, but one day you will be in Opposition. Just remember that you would appreciate a Minister advising you when he visits your area. In future would you please send any correspondence from the Department of Education and Training directly to me and I will forward it on to the constituent? Otherwise you are going to encourage letters going to Ministers that do not mention whom we are representing.

Ms Angela D'Amore: Oh!

Mr THOMAS GEORGE: The member for Drummoyne makes a big joke of it but let me tell you that the constituents do not appreciate it either. My constituents rang me and highlighted their concerns about receiving a direct reply when they had contacted me in the first place. I think it is respected around here that no one tries harder than me to stick to some sort of code of ethics. When Ministers come to our electorates without informing us and write directly back to our constituents and bypass us it is not appreciated.

Mr RICHARD AMERY (Mount Druitt) [10.38 p.m.]: The Government does not support the Government Schools (Infrastructure Register) Bill 2007. It is a private member's bill introduced by the Leader of The Nationals. Its object is stated to be establishing a requirement for the Director General of the Department of Education and Training to keep an infrastructure register in relation to government schools. On the face of it one might say that having a register of required works seems a fair enough proposal and therefore by legislation we should tell the director general to do that which he already does—keep a priority list of major projects within the department. The Opposition's bill would create a public list that would rank one school as No. 1 and another as No. 1,250. What impact would that have?

Mr Brad Hazzard: That means you put more resources in.

Mr RICHARD AMERY: I will talk about resources in a moment. I am glad that the member for Wakehurst has interjected on that subject, which the member for Lismore also mentioned. It would not matter if we doubled the Education budget; there would always be a No. 1 ranked school on the so-called register and a school ranked No. 1,250. That is a most divisive proposition. It would cause consternation in school communities across the State. But divisiveness in all public policy is what the Coalition is about. The member for Lismore referred to the Investing in Our Schools Program, which is a divisive policy of the former Federal Government. Under that policy the Federal Government bypassed the Director General of the Department of Education and Training, the department and, in many cases, local school communities and funded directly public schools controlled by the State Government.

Mr Brad Hazzard: This is great. We can send a copy of this to all your school principals and all your parents and citizens associations.

Mr RICHARD AMERY: Please do. I will give the member for Wakehurst the stamps to make sure that he does. It is all about resources. The member for Lismore named some projects underway in his electorate, and I will name some from my electorate if I get time. What underpins resources? It is funding. What was a big issue during the recent Federal election campaign?

Mr Brad Hazzard: It was actually lousy school maintenance because of seven Labor governments.

Mr RICHARD AMERY: The interjection by the member for Wakehurst leads me to another point. This week members seem to be playing bit-parts in an episode of Fawlty Towers—no-one will mention the war. We seem to have forgotten that something happened last weekend. Of those who have sat in the public gallery this week—and who have not watched television, listened to a radio or read a newspaper—only the cryptic crossword experts could detect from what has been said in Parliament that there was a Federal election last weekend. As far as education funding is concerned, there is light at the end of the tunnel. That light is the election of the Rudd Labor Government on the weekend. I formally announce to the Parliament of New South Wales—because Hansard obviously has not been informed—that the Labor Party, of which I have been a member for more than 30 years and of which there is probably 1,000 years membership collectively on this side of the House, had a historic election win on Saturday. As we speak, the new Rudd Ministry is being selected by the Labor Party Caucus and the leader. What a fantastic result! But for some reason it is not mentioned in this place.

Mr Rudd and his team were elected largely because of the Howard Government's policy of decreasing funding for public schools over the past 11 years. Mr Rudd made the "education revolution" a big issue in the election campaign. What position did the Teachers Federation take? It pointed out, I think quite eloquently, that the Howard Government since its election has progressively decreased the amount of Federal funding for public schools in all States, and certainly in New South Wales. As a result the New South Wales Labor Government has had to put its hands deeper and deeper into its pockets in order to make up the funding shortfall. But there is now a light at the end of the tunnel because—and I repeat—Kevin Rudd has just been elected Prime Minister of Australia, due in no small part to the decreases in education funding by the Howard Government over the past 11 years.

I thank the Leader of The Nationals for introducing this bill that, in cricket terms, is a full toss to the Government. It highlights the fact that the Federal Coalition Government has an appalling, divisive record when it comes to funding education in all States, and certainly in New South Wales. My electorate, like many others around the State, has a combination of schools, some of which were built in the past 10, 15 or 20 years and others that were built anything from 50 to 100 years ago. New motor vehicles come with power steering and air-conditioning, and the older ones do not. So, too, older schools do not have purpose-built libraries, freestanding halls, increased electricity capacity and so on. My constituents who send their children to older schools are trying to ensure that those schools catch up with the newer schools that have modern amenities.

The State Government has allocated record funding for catch-up school maintenance. I pay tribute to the former Minister for Education and Training, Carmel Tebbutt, to whom I highlighted school maintenance needs and the ongoing lack of Federal funding for schools in the electorate of Mount Druitt. Colyton Public School needed a hall, for which it campaigned for about 15 years. Rooty Hill High School needed a freestanding library because it had been using converted classrooms for this purpose for virtually 40 years—ever since the school was built. Eastern Creek Public School could not reach the enrolment requirement that would secure a decent library for the school.

I give credit to the former Minister for Education and Training—as I did in my speech during the budget debate—for visiting my electorate and for allocating funding to those schools, although the department's maintenance and capital works budget was strained. Two of the projects are now in progress and I understand that the other project is about to go to tender. The State Government can make that sort of commitment in all electorates. It is doing its best to make up the shortfall in Federal capital funding over the past 11 years. Some Opposition members will assert that the Federal Government allocated millions of dollars to education last year, and planned to allocate more this year. That is a sleight of hand. The Federal Government always claimed to be increasing funding.

Mr Phillip Costa: Former.

Mr RICHARD AMERY: I am sorry; I keep forgetting. I have already announced the Federal election result, have I not? Before I conclude my speech I will do so again because we are not talking much about it in the House this week. The growth in education funding might have been running, for the sake of argument, at 5 per cent or 6 per cent. The Federal Government would then allocate to the States a consumer price index increase of maybe 2 per cent or 3 per cent, based on whatever formula it used. The Federal Government's funding contribution to the States was always less than the cost of public education—the cost of bricks and mortar, and paying teachers and staff.

Therefore, the State Government had to continually increase education funding in its budgets. As a result, education now receives the second-highest funding allocation—about one-quarter of the entire State budget now goes to education. Contrast that with the divisive approach of the former Federal Government. Due in no small part to its poor record on public education funding, Federal Coalition members are now in the wilderness on the Opposition benches. No doubt they will enjoy discussing their situation with State Coalition members, who have been in opposition for more than a decade.

The bill would establish a public register by an Act of Parliament. The director general would be required to prioritise projects such as school halls, public fencing, plumbing works, toilet repairs and so on at schools around the State. Some schools would be funded in the current year and some would receive funding in the future. That would cause school communities a great deal of distress. I do not believe that parliaments should be so prescriptive as to tell departments how to prioritise every little maintenance project.

There is an old catchcry that the Opposition is about accountability. We must look through the nonsense of the proposition now before the Parliament. The Opposition wants all the toilets in New South Wales schools to be listed on a register. Who is to say which toilets will be fixed next week? It is an absurd piece of legislation. It is the sort of thing that the Opposition cooks up for a Thursday morning. No-one could take this proposition seriously. I will conclude as I started. The Federal Government's Investing in Our Schools Program, the resourcing of our schools and the decline in Federal Government allocations to public education over the past 11 years are the real reason why the Federal Coalition is in opposition today. That is the real reason that we have seen headlines such as, "Rudd bowls Howard" and "Victory for ALP".

Mr Jonathan O'Dea: Point of order: Newspapers should not be read from or brought into the Chamber.

ASSISTANT-SPEAKER (Mr Grant McBride): Order! I uphold the point of order.

Mr RICHARD AMERY: I was making passing reference, because obviously the Opposition has not read them. Members and visitors in the gallery should go to the Parliamentary Library, where there is a good stock of weekend newspapers, and read the headlines showing that last weekend the Federal Coalition Government was defeated and Kevin Rudd won the biggest Labor win since 1943. He knocked off the Prime Minister, the first time that has happened since 1929. Whilst industrial relations and climate change were big issues, education funding and the poor performance of the former Federal Coalition Government are the reasons why the Opposition is bleating about resources in the House today. Our education department, our school communities, our education Minister and our Government have been drained of Federal funding for the past 11 years. With the election of the Rudd Labor Government I am sure that the situation will improve in the future.

Debate adjourned on motion by Mr Daryl Maguire and set down as an order of the day for a future day.