Catholic schools ‘will not bully’ us, says Education Minister

EDUCATION Minister Simon Birmingham says the federal government won’t be bullied or blackmailed by a Catholic schools campaign over funding levels.

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EDUCATION Minister Simon Birmingham says the federal government won’t be bullied or blackmailed by a Catholic schools campaign over funding levels.

The Turnbull government risks major division within its partyroom next week as nervous MPs grow concerned over the Catholic education sector’s dissatisfaction with a new funding agreement.

Catholic schools will experience a slower rate of funding growth than independent and public schools under the agreement but will still increase, on average, 3.7 per cent a year — about $3424 per student.

Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham is standing firm. Picture: AAP/Dean Lewins

But a handful of Victorian Coalition MPs told the Herald Sun Senator Birmingham must “fix” his education policy to avoid internal dissent as the Catholic community began a letter-writing campaign.

Senator Birmingham stood firm on Thursday, saying he did not intend to make changes that favoured one state, sector or system over another.

“The whole point of the reforms we have announced to school funding is to get away from special deals, to get away from ancient sweetheart arrangements,” he said.

Senator Birmingham said the government wanted to avoid a situation where “every four or six years” a school sector or a state government would try to “blackmail or bully federal governments into doing something that suits them and gives them a competitive advantage over another part of the schooling sector”.

Writing in Friday’s Herald Sun, Catholic Education Commission of Victoria executive director Stephen Elder said the changes would “fundamentally reshape” Catholic education, leading to forced closures, larger class sizes and higher fees.

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“Many parish primary schools in Melbourne and other major cities will be expected to double or triple their fees over the next decade in real terms,” he wrote.

Government minister Michael Sukkar said he hoped Senator Birmingham would work with Catholic education leaders to reach an agreement, saying: “I don’t think they’re far off being happy”.