Page 1204 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 30 May 2007
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I have raised this issue, again, with the non government schools council and the parents and citizens as well as with the public schools through my department, through the department of sport and recreation, but we will have to change our approach a little from what has been the traditional model. We are somewhat used to this because the Canberra winter does not always lend itself to outdoor sporting activities for a large part of the school year. So we need to invest in new gymnasiums and we need to continue that process of high-quality physical education, using the facilities that we have available.
MR SMYTH: I have a supplementary question. Minister, with more than 13,000 students enrolled in the Catholic education system, why was the Catholic Education Office not consulted about the new regime until it received an email yesterday inviting it to today’s forum?
MR BARR: The issue here is in relation to this particular forum. They were invited.
Mr Hargreaves interjecting—
Mr Seselja: At the eleventh hour.
MR SPEAKER: Order! Mr Hargreaves and Mr Seselja.
MR BARR: The previous consultations in the sport and recreation portfolio focused on sporting groups. There was the sport and drought seminar that we held at the University of Canberra a number of months ago. I did not see Mr Smyth there; he was not particularly interested in the issue then. When we held that forum—
Ms Gallagher: He’s been briefed. He’s been freed up.
MR BARR: He has? He now has more time on his hands to focus on sport?
Ms Gallagher: Yes.
MR BARR: I welcome that attention from Mr Smyth. It is important that there is a bipartisan approach to this. This issue is too important for Mr Smyth to play political games with. It is too important for that. It is clearly an issue—
Opposition members interjecting—
MR BARR: Mr Speaker, I know that he cannot help himself. I know that he sees this as an avenue back to the leadership of the party. But this issue is too important to play political games with. I have undertaken a variety of consultation processes through the sport and recreation portfolio and also through the education portfolio. I discussed with the Non-Government Schools Education Council, which includes representatives from the Catholic Education Office, at my most recent meeting, not only the physical education in schools forum—which you and I both attended; we discussed this issue and I discussed my desire—
Mr Smyth: What did the non-government teachers say?
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