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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 04 Hansard (Tuesday, 30 March 2004) . . Page.. 1308 ..

the need to make a consequential amendment to the Board of Senior Secondary Studies Act 1997 to ensure consistency with terms used in other parts of the bill; and the requirement to amend terminology in schedule 2 of the Education Bill to remove inaccuracy of language.

The Education Bill 2003 will underpin schooling in the ACT. It facilitates diversity, choice, innovation and flexibility in the delivery of school education; protects the right of all children to a high quality education; and places an obligation on providers, whether government, non-government or home-educating parents, to ensure all children receive an education that will prepare them to participate fully in the world that awaits them.

In conclusion, I thank members for their support and cooperative efforts over recent years and months when working on the bill, acknowledge the stakeholders in the government and non-government sectors and thank them for their work and assistance on the bill and also acknowledge the enormous effort of staff within the Department of Education, Youth and Family Services to bring this work to conclusion. I particularly thank Gerry Cullen, whose retirement is dependent on the passage of the bill, Marty Alsford and Parliamentary Counsel who have worked tirelessly to get this bill to where it is today. It has been a long journey. It is a fantastic day for education in the ACT to see the passing of the in-principle stage of this legislation. I look forward to the detail stage of debate.

Question resolved in the affirmative.

Bill agreed to in principle.

Detail stage

Clause 1 agreed to.

Clause 2.

MS GALLAGHER (Minister for Education, Youth and Family Services, Minister for Women and Minister for Industrial Relations) (4.39): I move amendment No 1 circulated in my name and table a supplementary explanatory statement to those amendments [see schedule 1 at page 1371]. This amendment is to have the date of commencement of the act of 1 January 2005. This date will enable the legislation to take effect at the start of a school year and therefore avoid any uncertainty that might arise if it were to commence during the year.

Amendment agreed to.

Clause 2, as amended, agreed to.

Clauses 3 to 6, by leave, taken together and agreed to.

Clause 7.

MS DUNDAS (4.40): I move amendment No 1 circulated in my name [see schedule 2 at page 1375]. This amendment is about making the right to education as unambiguous as

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