Page 314 - Week 01 - Thursday, 14 February 1991
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Mr Speaker, our Government's status of women policy gives a clear commitment to this priority. The policy states:
The Alliance Government accepts there is inequity in participation in certain areas of training and employment ...
It goes on to say:
To improve future career options and to improve the attractiveness of non-traditional subjects, the Alliance Government will:
... review training and skills development options for ACT women, in particular the activities of the Vocational Training Authority, the Education and Training Council and TAFE and the services and programs funded by the ACT Government.
Mr Speaker, I have a firm commitment to these aims and have been working on them since coming into government. As the house will know, Mr Speaker, I am heading a review into training and skill development options for women in the ACT, and I would like to update you on that review.
At present I am working closely with the Women's Employment Advisory Committee, and we have developed very good terms of reference which look at the full range of issues affecting women in this area. For example, we will be looking at the structural barriers which stop women accessing the full range of training and skill development options. We will be identifying any gaps in current service provision, and also looking at ways of improving and promoting women's access to training and development. To achieve these goals, we will be not only working with groups I have mentioned earlier but also consulting with the community and the private sector as well. Mr Speaker, I hope to report to the Chief Minister on these very important issues by June this year. The review is very timely, considering the economic climate, and I believe that it will be of great benefit to the community.
Mr Speaker, another way that this Government is trying to improve opportunities for women is in developing a plan of action for women in TAFE. I know that the ACT Institute of TAFE is totally committed to producing a plan for women to complement the national plan for women in TAFE. The national plan of action for women in TAFE has been developed with a lot of consultation, some of which I have been involved with. I attended the ACT workshop last year and I was very impressed with the range of issues which were then covered, and those issues which have been expanded and are now included in the national plan of action.
Mr Speaker, the plan aims to accelerate and coordinate current action to improve women's achievements in all Australian TAFE systems. The plan is intended to be a rolling process, with regular reviews. This will ensure
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