Gonski 2.0: Liberals angry at ‘dirty’ schools funding deal with Greens, Senator Eric Abetz could vote against it
EXCLUSIVE: LIBERAL senator Eric Abetz could join his upper house colleague Chris Back in voting against the government’s Gonski 2.0 education bill.
NSW
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LIBERAL senator Eric Abetz could join his upper house colleague Chris Back in voting against the Turnbull government’s Gonski 2.0 education bill.
The revelation comes as the Liberal party room is this morning set to unleash tough feedback on the education package, as Education Minister Simon Birmingham finalises a compromise bill that would include an independent oversight body and an extra $5 billion in funding in six to eight years — a shorter period than the national scheme’s original 10-year transition period.
It’s understood that apart from Senator Abetz, who is in Tasmania this week, several Liberals MPs at the meeting are expected to express their disgust at the prospect of doing a “dirty deal” with the Greens.
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That’s despite Senator Birmingham telling The Daily Telegraph that school leaders and families need certainty to plan for the funding support for next year and into the future.
“It’s vital the Parliament passes the Turnbull government’s $18.6 billion needs-based plan this week so that schools can get on with planning for next year, certain in the knowledge our funding increase will flow through to them,” he said.
Senator Abetz told The Daily Telegraph he was “very concerned” about the impact of Gonski 2.0 on Catholic schools.
“I hope they haven’t done a dirty deal with the Greens because that would be absolutely horrific,” he said.
When asked whether he would support the government’s legislation in Parliament, he declined to commit to a position.
“I’m very concerned about the Catholic sector.
“I just wish there was more concentration on acknowledging the contribution of the mums and dads who pay for their children’s education with their after-tax dollars and not so much about so-called rich schools.”
With Labor refusing to support Gonski 2.0, the government needs to strike a compromise with either the Greens or both Senator Nick Xenophon’s and Pauline Hanson’s senators, as well as several other crossbenchers, to pass its needs-based funding reform this week.
.@RichardDiNatale says the schools package can't be rushed... 'I want to see the model done right'. #auspol MORE https://t.co/dp1goFINS5 pic.twitter.com/cW1H2fAeBG
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) June 19, 2017
The Greens are refusing to be rushed into reaching an agreement, with leader Richard Di Natale saying it was more important to get the model right than pass the legislation this week.
The Greens will meet today to discuss any proposal from the government.
Mr Birmingham said the reforms would create consistency and increase funding for Catholic education with an additional $3.4 billion over the course of the next 10 years.
Mr Birmingham has circulated a number of options to the Greens and to others, which include proposals to increase funding by $5 billion over the decade, to have an independent referee for funding decisions and to increase how transparent state governments need to be.
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