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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 6 Hansard (14 June) . . Page.. 1788 ..

MS TUCKER (continuing):

I do recognise that for some parents across Canberra the saving on school bus transport will be significant. I am well aware that parents may send their children to schools across the other side of Canberra. I can understand why such people may like the government for this proposal and why it may make a difference to how they vote in the next election. But when it comes to education it is the responsibility of government to ensure that above all else there is a viable comprehensive public education system in place which delivers a high-quality education for everyone in the community regardless of their socioeconomic background or ability. The ACT government's proposed scheme to make out of area school bus travel free to all students would tie up significant but undetermined expenditure indefinitely.

In answer to questions from the Estimates Committee it became crystal clear that the ACT government was not responding to any expressed community desire or need, asked for no advice on the issue whatsoever from its own department of education, offered no opportunity for key stakeholder or community groups to comment on or respond to the proposal, gave absolutely no consideration to the potential outcomes of an equal expenditure directly targeted at education, has no idea of the likely impact to school enrolments that this proposal may have, has no hard costings of the ongoing expense of this scheme, and has no analysis of who in particular will use and benefit from the free school bus program and who will be disadvantaged by it. It is not good enough to say that there was no research or analysis or understanding simply because it was a cabinet decision, because it was one of several promises made 61/2 years ago, and because it seemed like a good idea at the time.

The government has a duty to understand as best it can the impact or consequences of its actions and to accept responsibility for them. The duty of government is to govern for all of society. The duty of government is to offer leadership and vision for a community, not simply to plumb the market in search of votes. This is a government which has abandoned its duty. Unfortunately, I do not believe that this government consists of people who are totally unaware of the impact of their decisions, and I do not believe that the government has acted on impulse, thoughtlessly or carelessly.

Of course this government was aware that the introduction of a free school bus scheme would be opposed by the P&C Council of the ACT and the ACT Branch of the AEU. I imagine the government was also aware that the Catholic Education Office would at best or worst be equivocal about the scheme. On the other hand I have absolutely no doubt that the government was confident that the independent schools would support them.

Obviously the government holds the view that its best chance in the next election will be if it can create division, if it can pit some against others. This scheme could undermine the viability of community schools and by doing that it is having a very important negative impact on the very function that we should all value about having universal access to high-quality public schooling, and that is the social equalisation that such a system brings about. In Australia we do have this idea of a fair go for all. It is not a mythological approach. It is an ethos, isn't it. It is an Australian ethos-a fair go for all.

That fair go for all concept is based on the notion of equity, and equity is something which is not being put into social policy goals at all. Equity should be at the centre of any social policy approach, and it is lacking from this government and most liberal

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