Wednesday, 28 August 2024

Department of Treasury and Finance

Budget papers 2024–25

Michael GALEA (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (17:25): I rise today to speak on the budget papers of 2024–25 and indeed one the most important parts of the budget, which is the education budget. Under this government of course we are the Education State, and we have seen incredible investment in building 100 new schools right across the state, with all of them to be opened by next year. I have spoken many times in this place about the impact that has in my community, and I note in particular the diligent work of our current Minister for Education Ben Carroll in his advocacy for Victorian school students and indeed –

Bev McArthur interjected.

Michael GALEA: you raised phonics, Mrs McArthur – his leadership on the issue of phonics and applying the best possible teaching methods so that our students get the best possible start. This is a government that is ensuring that our kids get the best possible start, and it is why I was so proud to see our education minister in Canberra last week standing up for Victorian students, indeed standing up with ministers from across the country – state education ministers from across the nation – and standing up for the full 25 per cent federal funding component that is being asked for. I note, and I will even pay credit where it is due, that we did under the previous federal government see the rate increase from 17 per cent to 20 per cent, and that was a very good step forward. We need 25 per cent, though, and the offer of 2.25 per cent, frankly, is not going to cut – it should not be 17, it should not be 20; it should be 25 per cent. As a member of the Legal and Social Issues Committee I, like others in this place, have heard repeatedly from stakeholders, from principals, from teachers and from parents just how important that full 25 per cent component is. That is why it is so good to see our education minister taking that case up to Canberra. The difference it would make would be absolutely transformational. Some data from the Herald Sun shows, for example, two schools in my electorate. Lysterfield Primary School under a 25 per cent funding formula would receive an additional $517,000 of recurring funding. Rowville Secondary College, another terrific school, would receive an additional $1.7 million in funding. Ben Carroll gets it – I think we get it in here – and it is time for Victorian students to get a fair shake.

There is of course another way to achieve this if we do not receive this funding component from the federal government. We also know, and I have spoken in the past about it, the ongoing impact of the rate of GST reimbursement that Victoria receives as a state. We are constantly helping to lift up other states and getting less than our fair share back of our GST revenue. We have seen again some very good improvements under this federal government. It is now 97 cents back in the dollar, as opposed to the 80-odd cents that it was previously, but it is still under what we are getting, especially when the Victorian state government has continued to invest in all sorts of areas, including things such as the priority primary care centres – that was done here and also in New South Wales – as well as the trial of the sick pay guarantee. Again we were making sure that Victorians were supported even if there was an absence of leadership at the federal level in both of those cases under the former federal government. So maybe we could have a conversation about our states all getting our fair share of tax revenue back. Maybe we could even look at, if the states are going to do all these services, getting some of the income tax as well. But there is a much simpler way to do it, and that is of course with the full 25 per cent.

I do want to conclude my remarks by making a brief remark too about another very important issue as it pertains to the Victorian budget and as it pertains to education, and that is the news we have seen in recent days of a proposed cap on the amount of international students that universities in our state can take. That is a very serious and very concerning measure, because international education is one of our state’s most valuable, and one of our biggest, exports. It would be akin to going to tell WA that they have to cap the amount of mines that they can process in a year or the amount of mining that they can do. They would not tolerate that, and it is quite right as well that the Victorian government is speaking up on behalf of this state and saying, ‘No, you cannot put that cap on those industries.’ Our education sector is thriving and dynamic. We are one of the world’s leading places for medical research, and our universities are a fundamental part of that. I join other colleagues from the Victorian government in calling on the federal government to support Victorian education.