Page 4676 - Week 15 - Wednesday, 15 December 1993
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MS SZUTY (5.27): This legislation does indeed mark a significant first step in the further development and coordination of training opportunities in the ACT by the Australian National Training Authority. While the passage of this Bill is a small step which basically defines terms and enables the Minister, Mr Wood, to nominate the State training agency for the Territory, and confers powers, a considerable amount of work remains to be done over the next 12 months to formally establish the Vocational Training Authority, its composition and functions, and the consultative forums and processes that will need to be developed alongside it.
I wish to inform the Assembly also that I have had representations from the P and C Council seeking a position on the Vocational Training Authority once it has been nominated as a State training agency, which, I believe, is a fairly imminent decision by the Minister. Madam Speaker, I too, like Mr Cornwell, support their application for membership as at present parents do not have a voice on the Vocational Training Authority. Indeed, one of the objectives of a national vocational education and training system, as defined in the Schedule on page 18 of the Commonwealth Act, which the Minister kindly provided to me as background information, says:
improved cross-sectoral links between schools, higher education and vocational education and training.
It seems to me, Madam Speaker, that this can effectively occur only through active parent participation in the process. In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that I support the Bill in principle, and I look forward to hearing more information from the Minister next year as regards the progress being made to further develop training opportunities in the ACT.
MR WOOD (Minister for Education and Training, Minister for the Arts and Minister for the Environment, Land and Planning) (5.29), in reply: Madam Speaker, I thank members for their contributions and their support. I am not sure that I agree with Ms Szuty that this is a small step. I think it is a fairly large and very significant step. I would refer members to clause 4 of the Bill, which says:
The Authority has the functions, in relation to the Territory, that are expressed to be conferred on it by the Commonwealth Act.
The Commonwealth Act gives all the details of that. The formation of ANTA and our ceding of some of our authority to ANTA is a significant measure, but it is one that I am pleased that my colleagues here are supporting.
In response to Mr Cornwell, let me say that it puts the Commonwealth's money where its mouth is. Mr Cornwell said that he hoped that it was more than just words. Indeed it is. The $720m he indicated is additional, new money over the next few years. The Commonwealth is committed to this and it is backing it up with strong financial support and with strong legislative measures, and with a deal of activity elsewhere. For example, the Australian vocational certificate system itself, a major change to a national vocational training scheme, is a major initiative that has, in fairly rocky times, won the support of the States. Some of the flow-ons of that have had rocky times too, but we are getting there.
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