Page 4148 - Week 13 - Thursday, 25 November 1993
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The other point that needs to be made is that this Government has already closed a school. They will try to get out of it by saying, "No, we really did not close it. It was the parents knocking our door down, kicking and screaming - - -
Mr Lamont: Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Mr De Domenico does it a little bit too often. I would ask that, as the standing orders provide, he address his comments to you, as opposed to the press gallery.
MADAM SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr Lamont. Carry on, Mr De Domenico.
MR DE DOMENICO: Madam Speaker, I shall glue my eyes to your lovely face.
Ms Follett: Oh, come on!
MR DE DOMENICO: Come on? What is wrong with that? Madam Speaker, much as the Government will try to weasel out of it, they in fact did close a school, a primary school, and it was not because the parents said, "Will you please close our school? We do not really want it". It was not that at all. It is humbug when the Government says, "We will close no schools". What the Government is really saying is, "We will have fewer than 25 per class; we will have no school closures; we will have quality of education; we will have innovation and realistic outcomes; we will have all the things that are good and rosy". But at the same time what they are not saying is, "But we are going to sack 80 teachers anyway".
As Mr Moore, Ms Szuty and others have said, how can you continue to have the same quality of education as we have now with 80 fewer teachers? You cannot do it. As I said, it sounds pretty good, and it sounds even better when you say it with a smiling face; but the reality is that we are talking about at least 80 teachers going. I know that other members of this Assembly will not agree to the tactics that the Liberal Party might adopt. Mr Humphries attempted to close some schools, but is it not now incredible that the thing that Mr Humphries was attacked for doing two or three years ago is exactly what Mr Wood quite candidly concedes the Government might need to do in the future? In fact, they have done it already.
Madam Speaker, the other point that needs to be made is that no target has been shown by Mr Wood and this Government across the board. Mr Moore was quite right when he interjected before. He has seen no targets. The Government is obviously doing this in an attempt to reduce its budget. It is not thinking about quality of education; it is the bean counting principle that members of this side of the house are often attacked for. That is what this Government is doing in this instance and continues to do.
Let us look at consultation. I see that hands are waving all over the place, but let us look at the words "widest possible consultation". They sound good. It is a fantastic concept. What are the teachers saying about the 80 cutbacks?
Mr Connolly: Mr Temporary Deputy Speaker, I raise a point of order. I wonder whether Mr De Domenico could stick to his promise and direct his attention to the lovely face of the Temporary Deputy Speaker, Mr Westende, rather than to the press gallery.
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