Greens make ‘free’ public school election pitch

The Greens will use a $10bn cash splash to help parents with children in public schools to win over working voters, with the policy forming part of the minor party’s demands to Labor in a hung parliament.

Adam Bandt and the Greens are taking a $10bn policy to the election to make public schools completely free.

The Greens will use a $10bn cash splash to help parents with children in public schools in a bid to win over working voters, with the policy forming part of the minor party’s demands to Labor in a hung parliament.

Greens leader Adam Bandt is pushing to make public schools completely free by providing families with $800 per child for school supplies at the start of each year and abolishing all out-of-pocket fees for parents.

The pivot towards cost-of-living concerns comes after the Greens lost political ground in the ACT and Queensland elections, with the left-wing party declaring the policies would leave a family with two children in public school about $2500 better off a year.

The Greens have become increasingly isolated in parliament over their stance on the Middle East conflict, sparking criticism that the party’s hardline anti-Israel stance alienated voters in its traditionally inner-city heartland.

The proposal to cover “back to school” expenses for public primary and secondary students, which has been costed by the Parliamentary Budget Office, would inflict a $7.6bn hit to the nation’s finances over the forward estimates. The policy to wipe out school fees would cost the budget $2.4bn over the forward estimates, based on an average out-of-pocket cost of $441 per student.

The Greens have revealed the policies will be put on the table in any negotiations following the federal election, due by May, if voters deliver Anthony Albanese a minority government.

Reaffirming his support for public schools to be fully funded under the Gonski model, Mr Bandt said the school assistance reforms would be paid for by increasing taxes on big corporations.

“Parents are forking out thousands on ‘voluntary’ fees, uniforms and out-of-pocket costs, but meanwhile one in three big corporations pays no tax,” he said.

“Governments are underfunding our public schools and shifting the costs on to parents already struggling with the cost of living.”

Mr Bandt will make the announcement alongside education spokeswoman Penny Allman-Payne and housing spokesman Max Chandler-Mather at Coorparoo State School in the inner Brisbane seat of Griffith on Wednesday.

The Greens hold three federal seats in inner-city Brisbane – Griffith, Ryan and Brisbane.

Senator Allman-Payne said parents typically forked out more than $400 per child to cover voluntary school fees, and declared schools shouldn’t be forced to rely on the “generosity of parents” due to inadequate funding.

“Public school should be free, but families are having to dig deeper and deeper as fees have increased and the cost of uniforms, school supplies and education technology has soared,” she said.

“The situation is so bad that teachers are increasingly having to dip into their own pockets to pay for classroom basics that many families simply can’t afford.”

Fees for sending a child to public school increased almost 21 per cent between 2021 and 2022, costing $409 on average across the states and territories, according to the Greens. School supplies for a primary school-aged child cost an estimated $694 per year, and $1149 for secondary students.

Mr Chandler-Mather said preparing children for the school year should not cost thousands of dollars, adding that it’s “getting harder and harder to afford even a public education”.

The Greens have unveiled a series of “Robin Hood reforms” targeted at easing the cost of living for households by taxing corporations an additional $514bn over the decade.

The party is pushing for dental and mental healthcare to be funded by Medicare, a cap on rent increases, and free GP appointments.

The Albanese government was in a standoff last year with NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland over public school funding, with the states demanding the commonwealth contribute more towards the full funding level set out by businessman David Gonski in a landmark review in 2011.