Page 2570 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 23 August 2006
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and 1970s—a primary school was provided. But the Federal Labor Government in 1988 realised that that really was something that could not continue. And this government, regrettably—because it would be desirable if we did have the money to do that—realises that that, unfortunately, is a luxury we … cannot afford.
Mr Stefaniak then said:
I think Mr Humphries should be commended for the very hard, agonising and difficult decisions he has had to take—and, indeed, this Government has had to take.
No-one likes closing schools. It would be lovely if we could keep that system. We cannot, unfortunately.
We are standing on our own two feet now and, unfortunately, just as in the rest of Australia—just as in those Labor States that recognise the same problem—… rationalisation has to take place ...
“Rationalisation has to take place” is what the Leader of the Opposition thinks. He continued:
… Mr Humphries is doing all he can to ensure that this is as painless as possible and that the excellence of the education system remains.
That is just an excerpt of what Mr Stefaniak had to say; that is just an excerpt of what Mr Stefaniak really believes. That was the Liberal Party’s position in 1990, that was their belief in 1990, and nothing has changed since 1990, except that the situation has been exacerbated by 16 years of inaction. Nothing has changed except that Mr Stefaniak is now the Leader of the Opposition and not a member of the government. Mr Stefaniak now seeks to make political capital and political gain—to use political spin and take political advantage—out of a position which is at complete odds with what he thinks and believes in his heart. So this is not an honest motion. This is not the position which the Liberal Party took in 1990 when it announced its decision to close 25 schools. The Liberal Party announced in 1990 that it would close 25 schools, and this was Mr Stefaniak’s justification—
Mr Stefaniak: How many were closed, Jon? How many were closed?
MR STANHOPE: Mr Stefaniak rightly interjects, “How many were closed?” Mr Stefaniak did not have the strength then, just as he does not have the strength now. Mr Humphries did not have the strength then, just as he does not have the strength now. The Liberal government then did not have the strength which this government has. So, Mr Stefaniak, you are quite right: you announced that you proposed to close 25 schools but you did not, because you lost your courage. You wobbled. You fell over. Your cabinet abandoned its support for the minister for education. You did not have the strength of your convictions. Your motion today is a stunt. You know it is a stunt, we know it is a stunt, and the whole of Canberra knows it is a stunt. It is dishonourable to the extent that it does not reflect what you honestly think and feel and what you are on the record as saying.
MRS DUNNE (Ginninderra) (4.44): History is a wonderful thing. We have had discussions about the role of history in education and we have just seen the revisionist history, according to Jon Stanhope, of school closures in the ACT. Of course, we always
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