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Report shows TAFE funding cut 30 per cent over ten years

jfield — 2010-03-16T05:06:53Z

Commenting following the release of the report by the Australian Education Union, Dr Kaye said: "NSW Education and Training Minister Verity Firth needs to ensure that funding for TAFE addresses the years of neglect under successive state and federal governments.

"NSW currently ranks second last in recurrent government expenditure per publicly funded annual hour of public vocational education and training.

"This is a disgrace given NSW’s internal skills crisis is compounded by an exodus of trained workers to the mining boom states of WA and Queensland.

"Minister Firth needs to curb her Federal colleague’s infatuation with throwing cash at for-profit private training colleges and return to delivering quality, vocational education and training.

"The CEET report is backed up by an Australian Education Union survey of over 2,600 TAFE education professionals showing big gaps in resources at the coalface of skills training.

"The survey showed three-quarters of TAFE teachers in NSW had to turn away students in the last two years.

"Skills education is core government business. It is not an optional extra. It is the foundation of a solid economy and a successful community.

"Minister Firth needs to pressure her Federal colleagues to deliver increased funding for NSW TAFE," Dr Kaye said.

For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455

Copies of the reports are available at:

State of our TAFEs survey CEET report

Firth reopens league table debate to win cheap political points

jfield — 2010-03-16T05:13:28Z

NSW Education Minister Verity Firth has given notice of legislation to remove all protection against simplistic comparisons despite the damage done to students and educational outcomes and her obligations under the national protocols ('League table laws face new debate', SMH).

Commenting on Dr Kaye said: "Education Minister Verity Firth is playing politics with the future of education.

"As part of the Keneally government's campaign to wedge the Opposition over the issue of league tables, the Minister is prepared to put the future of children at disadvantaged schools at risk.

"Verity Firth is happy to see students and schools stigmatised by misleading league tables in order to stir up media hostility against Liberal leader Barry O'Farrell and create divisions within the Coalition.

"The Minister is sacrificing the quality of education in this state for the sake of a couple of headlines that might help the Labor party at the next election.

"The Minister is more interested in appeasing an angry media outlet than in protecting quality education in NSW.

"It is particularly appalling to see a Labor government attempting to score cheap campaign points at the expense of some of the state's most disadvantaged communities.

"Verity Firth has hidden behind the national protocols, despite their complete failure to stop league table. Now she is now trying to remove the last protection against league tables in this state," Dr Kaye said.

For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455

Renewable energy can ease soaring power bills

jfield — 2010-03-14T23:57:54Z

Commenting on a story in today's Daily Telegraph ('Powering up the
pain', page 6), Dr Kaye said: "Electricity price increases of between 44
and 62 per cent have been scheduled by the regulator for the middle of
this year.

"Much of this increase is being driven by a $17 billion spend on the
existing poles and wires network.

"Up to a third of this cost could be avoided by using renewable energy
as a solution to household power needs.

"NSW faces the prospect of creating 'fuel poverty', where some of the
state’s most vulnerable households will be forced to go cold this winter.

"Households should not have to bear the brunt of over two decades of
mismanagement of the state’s publicly owned electricity sector.

"Renewing the state’s electricity infrastructure is a perfect opportunity
for the NSW government to move to the proven technologies provided
by solar and wind.

"Instead of throwing cash at an old-fashioned technology that is beyond
its use-by date, the NSW government should be investing in smart grids
that can help households manage their power use.

"NSW Premier Kristina Keneally must act to make renewable energy the
primary focus for new electricity infrastructure," Dr Kaye said.

For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455

Tillegra Dam objections not addressed by 'sweeteners'

jfield — 2010-03-15T01:18:25Z

Commenting on the release of the Environmental Assessment Submissions Report
in the small hours of this morning (http://bit.ly/hwc-EASR), Dr Kaye said:
"The water supply authority has once again failed to address objections
raised by the community, local residents and water supply specialists.

"Instead they continue to fall back on the same old tired excuses they have
been churning out for the past three years.

"Hunter Water persists in its reliance on unrealistic drought risks. The
response has again failed to account for the use of water restrictions and
demand management to cope with any future short term pressure on supplies.

"The utility is trying to create panic over water shortages to justify
building their favourite project.

"A series of 'commitments' such as a possible national park and water
releases are nothing new. Hunter Water has packaged up its legal and
administrative obligations as concessions.

"The promise of 2.5 billion litres of water released into the Williams River
does not disguise the harsh reality that Tillegra would take flows of 60
billion litres a year from the Williams and Hunter River and the estuary.

"The re-engineering of Seaham Weir was always necessary and will do little
to keep the estuary and lower Hunter River alive.

"The community will not be panicked into accepting this dam and the Keneally
government should join them in rejecting the excuses and concessions.

"Hunter Water has broken faith with its obligation to serve its community.
It has reverted to being an old-fashioned engineering-dominated bureaucracy
with a 'build at any cost' mentality.

"The response to submissions is misleading and dismissive. The Keneally
government should reject the dam," Dr Kaye said.

For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455

Firth must protect NSW from curriculum backwards step

jfield — 2010-03-12T07:43:16Z

Commenting on a report in today's Sydney Morning Herald ('Teachers give poor marks to national curriculum'), Dr Kaye said: "The Science, English and History Teachers Associations have sounded the alarm bells that the draft national curriculum would be less prescriptive and integrated than the existing NSW documents and in some cases unworkable, difficult to use and too crowded.

"Their expert analysis suggests that adopting Julia Gillard's curriculum without major changes would be a step backwards for education in NSW.

"Verity Firth must make it clear to her federal colleague that NSW will reject the national curriculum unless all of these problems are fixed.

"Major reworking of at least three of the disciplines will be required to ensure that NSW students are not forced to accept poorer quality education.

"With just eleven weeks of consultation, it is difficult to see how substantial re-writing can be achieved in time to start rolling out the new contents next year.

"Thanks to decades of hard work by NSW teachers and education experts, this state has a world-leading curriculum that is well suited to the range of needs of students.

"NSW should not be forced to take a backwards step to bolster the political ambitions of the Deputy Prime Minister.

"Verity Firth has promised that NSW students will not lose out in the change to a national curriculum.

"She cannot ignore the expert warnings.

"The NSW minister must make it clear to her federal counterpart that acceptance of any new curriculum is conditional on it being at least as good as the existing documents," Dr Kaye said.

For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455