The Turnbull government has performed a spectacular backflip and adopted David Gonski's needs-based funding model for schools.

In a move that blunts one of Labor's most powerful attacks against the Coalition, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Education Minister Simon Birmingham, accompanied by Mr Gonski, have pledged to deliver needs-based funding to all schools across the decade, resulting in $18.6 billion extra being poured into school education, which equates to a 75 per cent increase over 10 years.