Page 3170 - Week 10 - Thursday, 18 October 2007
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MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Mr Seselja, I am struggling to draw a connection between Mao Zedong, the West Wing and education. I remind you that your remarks should be relevant.
MR SESELJA: You will have to watch the episode, Mr Deputy Speaker. I believe it was in season 2.
When we talk about the collaborative approach to education, it would be remiss of us not to mention the lies of the Labor Party at the last ACT election. That is not a collaborative approach to education. It is not a collaborative approach, prior to an election, to say, “We will not be closing schools; it is the other mob,” and then, 18 months after the election, announce a radical plan to slash and burn in relation to schools in the ACT education system.
The blatant lies that they took to the last election are a disgrace and do not reflect the importance of a collaborative approach when it comes to education. That is not a collaborative approach. A collaborative approach would have been to be honest with the people of the ACT, to be fair dinkum going into the election and actually outline their plans, rather than misleading the community about their future plans in relation to education.
Mr Gentleman failed to speak about some of the important parts of the federal Labor Party policy in this area. Of course, in recent times we have seen Mr Latham’s hit list. It was one of the centrepieces of their policy. I will get to the history in a moment. They disown them quickly in the Labor Party now, don’t they? How long was Mr Latham the opposition leader?
Members interjecting—
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! Mr Seselja, resume your seat. Members on both sides, this is getting so loud that I cannot concentrate to maintain order. Mr Seselja, you have the floor.
MR SESELJA: The Latham hit list is reflective of what the Labor Party really believes about non-government education. It reflects the true values of the Labor Party. It is the class warfare that was reflected by Mr Latham. He was roundly defeated, of course, but he reflects a big part of Labor Party thinking in this area. They hate non-government schools. That is why they have the hit list. They hate non-government education, and we saw it reflected at the ACT Labor Party conference where I believe they were short by one vote—
Mrs Dunne: Two votes.
MR SESELJA: two votes to get blatantly anti non-government education funding. How many Labor Party MLAs in this place voted essentially just against funding of non-government schools? There were four. Mr Gentleman voted in favour of the anti non-government school motion. There were Mr Corbell and Ms Gallagher. Who was the fourth? Mr Berry—
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