Page 3095 - Week 10 - Thursday, 15 August 2013
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essentials, to entertain, to invite their families to Canberra. This generates around $500 million a year to the ACT economy and supports the retail, tourism, hospitality and construction industries as well as other sectors.
So what happens now? We have already started to see the impact. We have ANU students on strike because their tutorials have been cancelled across a number of subjects to save university funds. Whole subject areas have been scrapped. And let us not talk about the slashing of the ANU School of Music.
Dr Bourke: A point of order.
MADAM DEPUTY SPEAKER: Dr Bourke, you have a point of order? Sit down, Mr Doszpot. Stop the clock, please.
Dr Bourke: The point of order relates to relevance, Madam Deputy Speaker. Mr Doszpot is talking about higher education and university students, and this is a line item which relates to the Education and Training Directorate.
Mr Wall: Further to the point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker—
MADAM DEPUTY SPEAKER: Yes, Mr Wall?
Mr Wall: I think there is complete relevance. Mr Doszpot is speaking about some of the implications of the original Gonski agreement and therefore it is relevant to the line item.
MADAM DEPUTY SPEAKER: Mr Doszpot, I think that you have made the point about the effect of the former Gonski decision on university funding. I think you have said enough. You have made your point very well. Would you like to go on to the substantive question of the proposed expenditure now, thank you.
MR DOSZPOT: Madam Speaker, may I address that point myself? It has got relevance.
MADAM DEPUTY SPEAKER: Do you want to raise a point of order as well?
MR DOSZPOT: Yes. It has got direct relevance because, overall, the expenditure that is required within the education sector will be impacted by some of the issues that confront the universities. So it has got some relevance. I do not have much more to say on that but I do have a couple more paragraphs.
MADAM DEPUTY SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr Doszpot. I would like you to come as quickly as possible to the substantive matter of the proposed expenditure.
MR DOSZPOT: Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. The ANU has estimated it stands to lose $13 million over the next two years because of the federal government’s “robbing Peter to pay Paul” education policy. As Professor Parker described it at the time, “It is just bad policy which pitches one side of the education sector against another.” The University of Canberra is facing a $3 million hole because of this. As I warned the Assembly earlier this year:
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