Wednesday, 13 November 2024

Petitions

St Joseph’s Christian college

Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) (17:41): I move:

That the petition be taken into consideration.

It is my great privilege to stand here in support of a petition of 4730 Victorians, who have petitioned in this place in support of St Joseph’s Christian college in Yuroke. These Victorians have come together to call on the government to simply get out of the way and allow the Assyrian Church of the East community to build this school on their own land on Mickleham Road.

On the surface the petition I am presenting on behalf of my constituents, and our constituents, is about a planning issue, asking the Legislative Council to call on the state Labor government to approve the St Joseph’s Christian college proposal and reconsider it with due regard to the significant community backing. At its core it is about so much more than that.

The petitioners are asking the government to respect their faith and allow them to build a school that will allow them to raise and educate their children in their faith, aligned with the doctrines of the Assyrian Church of the East. The school will offer a specialised curriculum tailored to meet their unique religious and cultural needs, which are currently unmet by systemic education. Another benefit is that the school will teach the Assyrian language as a core subject, ensuring the preservation of the native tongue, which is a UNESCO-listed endangered language. The Assyrian language and its Aramaic dialects are among the oldest continuously spoken and written languages in the world. It is also the language that was spoken by Jesus Christ himself.

I have had the opportunity to spend a great deal of time with this community, led by his grace bishop Mar Benyamin Elya, Father Antawan and Father Maurice, the reverend fathers, and I know that they are a close-knit, hardworking community of Christians who seek to raise and educate communities in their faith.

Why is faith in education important? I think it is summed up best by the founder of my party, Sir Robert Menzies, who told a church gathering in 1944 that Christianity:

… begins its teaching by imposing on every citizen the obligation of unselfishness, of thinking of the interests of his neighbour before his own, and regarding himself as his brother’s keeper.

These are precisely the values that the Assyrian Church community seek to raise their children to hold through education at their own school – St Joseph’s Christian college – and exactly the kinds of values I hope my children will be raised to hold and to cherish. Sadly, there is a real shortage of faith-based schools, particularly in my electorate. Many Catholic and Christian schools, like Kolbe Catholic College or St Mary orthodox college in Coolaroo, have long waiting lists.

The school is not demanding any special favours. They have taken the initiative of purchasing two parcels of land and have done the right thing by following every rule in the rule book to get planning approval from the state government. Many Labor MPs have visited the site in Yuroke with the church leadership, assured the church community that it will all be okay in submitting planning applications and celebrated their submitting planning applications, as they were encouraged to do by the department in 2023. The school has complied with multiple requests for change, including – I think disappointingly – having to downscale in size and not go all the way to year 12 and having to change intersections multiple times. They have spent a lot of money on legal fees, money that could have been spent on educating students. They held two compulsory conferences with the Department of Transport and Planning, and in the church’s view the department kept moving the goalposts.

I note there appears to be some confusion in the department about Hume City Council’s position on this proposal. The council have made it very clear that they do not actually oppose the school. They have never opposed the school, and I want to know who in the government has made the mistake of believing that Hume City Council did. The important point, I think, is that the department and the government, by extension, have made it clear that they do not want a school on Mickleham Road, because it will cause traffic congestion and they do not want a school zone. This is despite Labor fast-tracking the Craigieburn West Precinct Structure Plan, the PSP, which will bring 8000 homes and all manner of related congestion, against the wishes of the council – Hume City Council actually opposed that – and the local community. But no, it is the school that will cause traffic, despite the 200-metre setback. Similar setbacks exist at Aitken College on Mickleham Road, which is a well-established school. I think it is important the government get on with it and support the school and support the almost 5000 people that have signed this petition.

Enver ERDOGAN (Northern Metropolitan – Minister for Corrections, Minister for Youth Justice, Minister for Victim Support) (17:46): I am pleased to rise and speak on the proposed St Joseph’s Christian college in Yuroke, an issue very close to my heart and I know very close to the heart of many in my community. I want to also begin by acknowledging that I see so many friends in the gallery today, and it would be remiss of me not to acknowledge Reverend Father Morris Daoud from the Assyrian Church of the East. Also, I can see in the gallery former mayor of Hume City Council Joseph Haweil and Cr John Haddad, long-time friends of mine and friends of the Assyrian community, who have advocated strongly on this project.

What I will say, as one of the two Labor members for the Northern Metropolitan Region and as a resident of Greenvale, is I know how important it is to establish the St Joseph’s Christian college in our community. I understand that the journey to this stage has been long and at times has been quite stressful, but I want to reassure everybody that the Allan Labor government and I share the community’s desire to see a school built. We recognise the significant growth of the Assyrian community in Melbourne’s north, and several government MPs have been advocating very strongly within government – within a government that can deliver. In particular, I want to give a shout-out to Ros Spence in the other place, the member for Kalkallo, and also Iwan Walters, the member for Greenvale, who have raised this issue with other cabinet ministers and with the Premier and are strongly advocating for this school. I can understand that their steadfast advocacy is motivated by a strong desire for the Assyrian families in our community to be able to choose the education for their children that encapsulates their faith, language and culture.

I know my time is limited, but again I think it is relevant to acknowledge the Assyrian people in context as one of the longest surviving civilizations today. After a long journey on which they have suffered quite significant persecution, they have come here and are making a really positive contribution in our community. How lucky I feel to have such a large Assyrian community in Melbourne’s north. It is a community that has contributed so much to humankind, whether it be from the Babylonian codes or the Sumerian ziggurats. It is a culture that still survives today, and that is due to the resilience and faith of the community.

I would note that the process, as has been discussed, is going through VCAT at the moment, and I am limited in what I can say in relation to that process because, as the planning process is an independent process, I do not want to politicise that process, understanding that that will only lead to a suggestion of interference in an independent tribunal. Also, I think what the opposition are trying to do is to stoke division on this motion and be quite deceptive in relation to these matters. Understand, as a government, we will continue to work; there is that process in place. But, regardless, we will continue to work with you, and in this term of government I would like to see progress in relation to the school.

In terms of our work and in terms of faith-based schools, it is important, because as a government we believe in the right of people to choose. Choice is important in education, and opportunity is important, and in our community in the north we need more opportunities and more choice. Obviously, a lot of young families like mine, young Middle Eastern families, do have a lot of children, and I think the point is that we do need schools that fit our values. I know the Assyrian community are very connected with their culture in that regard, and these schools instil those traditions and values. I look forward to supporting them.

In our community alone there is a reference to some of the schools, but no government in the history of the state has invested more in schools – and not just government schools. Some of the independent ones that just come to mind are Kolbe Catholic College, which many of you will be familiar with – our government supported them with their Greenvale Mickleham campus. Mary Queen of Heaven Primary School and Aitken College in Greenvale, Penola Catholic College in Broadmeadows and Glenroy and Oscar Romero Catholic Primary School in Craigieburn are just some examples of where the government has worked with the independent school sector. Non-government and faith-based schools are an essential part of Victoria’s education system, with over a third of students studying in Catholic or independent schools, and I can confirm that our government will work in continued partnership with the church and the Assyrian community to deliver a school for your community. It will happen.

The Allan Labor government is and always will be a government focused on education. We do not just talk about schools; we build them. An example that comes to mind is 2018. The opposition promised four schools – four in the whole state. From 2018 to now we have promised 100 schools, and almost all have been delivered already. If we say we are going to do it, we will get on with it. We do not just talk about it.

I think faith-based schools are important. It is important to share that culture because when our young people are connected to culture and have a sense of belonging it leads to better outcomes. I am also a minister in other portfolios, and I see that for young people to strive and achieve, they need to be connected to culture and family, and schools and communities are an important part of that. But like I said, it is only Labor governments that build schools, and I look forward to continuing work with the Assyrian community to make progress in this term of government.

Richard WELCH (North-Eastern Metropolitan) (17:51): I am really very pleased to stand and speak on this petition. It is a really important petition because it represents a genuine need in the community that has been overlooked, ignored, stymied, hindered and, in some senses, harassed. The school is important. This has been triggered by the delivery of 4730 signatures from the community, and these are from across Melbourne, including my seat of North-East Metro. Many people are from Mill Park, Bundoora and South Morang and are members of this community who would value this school.

The school, as has been mentioned, will do important things. It will preserve language, it will foster culture, it will provide education in an area that significantly needs education facilities made for it and it will preserve faith. Let us not forget, faith is not a marginal thing in our community; faith is a mainstream thing in our community, and sometimes I think we are gaslighted into believing that faith is somehow marginal in our community. It is not; it is central. It always has been central in Australian society, and the Assyrian community should participate in that tradition alongside the rest of us where that faith is mainstream. The importance of faith-based education is the perpetuation of values – the values that you have as a community. You are in a sense defined by your values, and if you cannot pass them on successfully, you lose those values and you lose a significant and meaningful part of your identity.

In talking to some members of the community and from looking at other data points, it is perplexing how difficult this application process has become and why it has become so difficult, because clearly the community has done everything in its power to be accommodating, everything in its power to be flexible and everything at its expense to do so, and yet simultaneously across the road far more draconian changes were being made and swept through and approved. We would note that Ros Spence sits in cabinet across from the Minister for Planning and can on any day speak to the Minister for Planning, call this project in and have it approved. The government has had no hesitation in doing that and pushing through planning changes in other suburbs where it wants to build high-rise flats or where it wants to make draconian changes – just not here, just not for this community and just not for this school. That is why you have been forced to raise a petition and use your democratic voice in this way, and I commend you for it.

The permit was provided to the department in July 2023. They made multiple changes, they attended compulsory conferences with the Department of Transport and Planning, they accommodated the changes and they addressed the issues of traffic congestion – and if something has a 200-metre setback, it is incomprehensible to me or to any logical person how this has not addressed the issue. I can only imagine the frustration of the community rising as this occurred. Again, we do not know why it has not been supported. It is a no-brainer; it should be supported. I am very pleased that we can add a little bit extra to their voice in getting this, hopefully, across the line, and I am pleased to hear from the other side that suddenly this has support. What we would like to see is not lip-service; what we would like to see is action.

We have a tradition in this society that as different communities have moved to Australia, as different multicultural communities have arrived in the past, we have almost fallen over ourselves to make sure they are welcome, that they have community centres, that they have somewhere to meet and somewhere to commune, but not in this case. It is such an anomaly in this case, and it makes no sense. I commend the community for raising their voice. I commend my colleague Mr Mulholland for bringing it to Parliament and giving that voice expression here in this chamber. I would conclude by saying that this is an important project for a growing area that needs infrastructure. It is time for the government to get out of the way and let the Assyrian Church of the East build their much-needed school.

Ann-Marie HERMANS (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (17:56): I also rise in support of the petition that has been sponsored by my colleague Evan Mulholland. This petition is incredibly important to this community. They have travelled a long way to be here today, and some of these people, a handful of these people, were here at the time we debated the Lord’s Prayer. It is incredibly important for people who have survived persecution and come here with their faith to be able to maintain that faith in a country that says it is free and that cherishes democracy and opportunity. It is incredibly important when people come from another country and are promised great things in this nation that we deliver to support these communities that we bring out.

I have been to a service in the northern region that commemorates those that have lost their lives and commemorates family that remembers the persecution. I cannot imagine what many of these people that are here today have gone through and what their families have gone through, and they come here with a great hope and a willingness to contribute to this community. I have had the great pleasure of meeting many of these people more than once, and some of them I have just met today, and I know that this is incredibly important to them, to have a school that is going to reflect their language, their culture and their values.

I myself made a decision not only to raise my kids in faith-based schools but also to teach in them and to work in them, because I too wanted to have the opportunity to raise my children with the values that I was raised with, where I grew up, also with parents who had come from another country and who came here with values that were incredibly important to them. In my dad’s case, he was a minority in his country. I really appreciate and value the fact that these people have gone to a lot of time and effort but also money – money has been invested in order to comply with the wishes of a member for the Northern Metropolitan Region Mr Erdogan, who had encouraged planning applications and encouraged them to take on this opportunity. This application, as we have heard in this place already today, was provided to the department in July 2023.

The application for a school has gone through multiple requests for change, even to the point that they have been disappointed to say that they have had to downscale a whole lot of things because of an intersection. They have also spent a significant amount of money on legal fees. That is, to me, just a waste of money for them, because these are people who have come here with very little or nothing and they have come to give their families a better life. They care about this so much and their values are not in conflict with our society. Their values and their languages – this language is one of the oldest languages that has survived to this day, potentially even the oldest language around. It is certainly one of the oldest, and it is incredibly important to them that they can pass on what they have brought and survived with. I think that given that they no longer have a nation that they can actually put their flag in and say, ‘This is my country, my home,’ they have come here with that intent: ‘This is my country, and this is my home.’ And their request is simple. New South Wales has been able to grant them a school. The New South Wales government has been able to give them space – why not Victoria? Promises, promises, promises but no delivery. All this talk about ‘Let’s bash the opposition’ – we have been in opposition for 10 years. We cannot deliver the school for them, but if we could, I can guarantee we would fight tooth and nail to make sure that this community could have their faith, their values, their language and their school, because they deserve it, because we believe in that freedom and because we believe in the opportunity for people in Australia to be able to embrace the democratic system and the freedoms that democracy actually provides.

So in conclusion all I can say is that when you have this many people prepared to come out through peak-hour traffic because they care that much about what happens to their community and their school and about the opportunity to have that school and to raise their kids in a school that means something to them – I think that this government needs to listen to that.

Ingrid STITT (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Mental Health, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (18:01): I rise to make a very brief contribution in relation to this petition and echo those commitments and comments that my colleague Minister Erdogan has made this afternoon.

We are a proudly multicultural community here in Victoria. We have so many different parts of our community that have come from all over the world to make a better life in Victoria, and our government will always stand by our multicultural and diverse communities. It is one of our state’s great strengths, and we are obviously very keen to ensure that we work closely with the community when it comes to not only community infrastructure, people’s right to practise their faith and their right to come together and celebrate their culture but also obviously other important institutions such as schools and churches and places of faith. So as my colleague has already indicated, the government will continue to work with the community in making sure that they achieve their desired outcome when it comes to having their own school. As you know, there are matters afoot currently before VCAT, but rest assured the government will continue to work closely with the community.

We understand that this is an important issue for many, many families right across the northern suburbs, and we will work closely with the community to realise this vision, and I think that it is very important that we do not play politics with this issue, because our social cohesion and our strength as a vibrant and multicultural community is too important for that.

Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) (18:03): I would like to thank those that made contributions in good faith, particularly Mr Welch and Mrs Hermans as well. I would just like to, in my summing-up, acknowledge a couple of comments, particularly comments that I was attempting to stoke division or being deceptive. I would not be assisting with this school if there had not been a request and pleading with me by the reverend fathers, the bishop and the church community to work with them. Where they were working with the government, that was okay. Where they need assistance, of course I will provide assistance as the local member, and that is what I will do.

It is important that the Minister for Multicultural Affairs keep this above politics. On 5 August the Leader of the Opposition John Pesutto wrote to Jacinta Allan about the school’s plight before it was in VCAT and asked her to join with him in supporting the school to keep it above politics. She still has not responded. My colleague Jess Wilson, the Shadow Minister for Early Childhood and Education, has written to the Minister for Education Ben Carroll. At least he had the decency to respond, saying he could not really comment because it was in VCAT but in principle wanted to work with the community to support the school.

Something I want to particularly talk about is that Mr Erdogan mentioned the member for Kalkallo lobbying as well. According to what I have heard, she has been completely absent on this issue and abdicated her responsibilities as a local member to other members of Parliament that are not in cabinet. The most influential person in this case would be the member for Kalkallo, who sits across the cabinet table from the Minister for Planning, who does have the ability to call this in, who does call in other projects in Liberal seats.

It is important to support this school. I will be with the school every step of the way in support of it.

Motion agreed to.