STUDENTS SWELTERING AND SHORT-CHANGED UNDER LABOR
The Minns Labor Government will leave students sweltering in dozens of classrooms across Western Sydney after it cut $130 million in funding for air conditioning that was signed off by the former Government.
Minister for Education and Early Learning Prue Car was quizzed on the shortfall in Budget Estimates today, but failed to explain why Labor did not allocate a single dollar to fix the issue.
The Liberals and Nationals guaranteed the additional support from the WestInvest Fund in February, which would have air conditioned an additional 166 public schools, on top of the 997 already improved through its $500 million Cooler Classrooms initiative.
Shadow Minister for Education and Early Learning Sarah Mitchell said the Minister has been all spin and no substance when it came to providing detail on her budget today.
“What we have seen today is the Labor Government again trying to hide how it has failed public schools, denying students the simple necessity of being cool across what is going to be an extremely hot spring and summer” Ms Mitchell said.
“I gave the Minister for Education and Western Sydney a chance to explain why, under her watch, the $130m that was set aside for these amenities was cut, and she failed to give a single answer to those communities that she is supposed to represent.
“This funding was always about improving the learning environments for both students and teachers and the Liberals and Nationals would have achieved that, so it is extremely disappointing that Labor doesn’t seem to think it’s a priority.”
Today’s hearing also revealed the Labor Government has completely under-funded its new school infrastructure projects to the tune of more than $2 billion.
“The Government is claiming it will deliver four new primary schools and 10 new high schools for $767 million in the next four years, but the head of school infrastructure confirmed today that you need at least $70 million to build a primary school and up to $200 million for a high school,” Ms Mitchell said.
“The numbers simply don’t add up and today the Minister could not quantify how this plan is anything but a fantasy.
“She is either deliberately fudging the figures, doesn’t understand how much schools cost to build or has no intention of delivering these schools in this term of Government.
“It just goes to show that this Government is short-changing families and creating budget blowouts before they have even put a shovel in the ground.”
