Wednesday, 7 February 2024

 Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) (12:24): (403) My question is to Minister Tierney. The Productivity Commission this week revealed that government real recurrent expenditure per student for VET in 2022 was the lowest in Victoria for two years in a row. In the middle of a cost-of-living and skills crisis, why has Labor reduced funding for Victorians to train and improve their skills?

 Gayle TIERNEY (Western Victoria – Minister for Skills and TAFE, Minister for Regional Development) (12:25): I thank the member for his question and for the opposition’s renewed interest and new interest in vocational education and training. In opening up, I would say given this renewed interest, I am wondering whether they are letting those that are thinking about vocational education and training, or indeed a university pathway, know what they actually did to the VET system when they were last in government, because they absolutely trashed it. They took $1 billion out of the system. They sacked over 2000 teachers. They shut down 22 campuses.

David Davis: On a point of order, President, question time is an opportunity for ministers to answer questions, not to go on a frolic attacking the opposition.

Harriet Shing: Further to the point of order, President, as soon as Minister Tierney got to her feet the interjections began. You cannot even interject if you are not actually talking, but it did not stop you anyway. As soon as that door is opened, the minister is well within her rights to respond to those interjections.

The PRESIDENT: I am in a position where I uphold both of those points of order. Interjections are unruly, and also I will call the minister back to the question.

Gayle TIERNEY: Thank you, President. In terms of this government’s contribution to the vocational education and training system, it cannot be refuted, our contribution, whether it be in terms of capital works, the number of teachers and the whole range of aligning the delivery and acquisition of skills to jobs, making sure that we are in tune with what is happening with industry or making sure that we have got the infrastructure so that we can deal with the skills and labour issues confronting the economy. That is why we have established the Victorian Skills Authority. That is why we have established Apprenticeships Victoria. That is why we have established an apprenticeships taskforce. This is a government that is absolutely proactive when it comes to ensuring that we have a pipeline of skilled workers.

The other thing that of course happened, not long before Christmas last year, is that we signed up to the National Skills Agreement, securing significant funding for the skills sector in this state for the next five years. So to come in here and tell me we have not done enough in this space is an absolute joke on you and yours. And in terms of us being an efficient deliverer of vocational education and training, ROGS has absolutely enforced that.

 Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) (12:29): According to the Productivity Commission 47 per cent of certificate I and II, nearly 30 per cent of certificate III and IV and over 30 per cent of diploma students failed to improve their employment status after training, making Victoria the worst in the country for this measure. Why has the Labor government failed thousands of Victorian VET students with funding cuts, failed policies and failed promises?

 Gayle TIERNEY (Western Victoria – Minister for Skills and TAFE, Minister for Regional Development) (12:29): In terms of ROGS – for those not familiar with ROGS, ROGS is a report that has so many different indicators. The other thing that I should mention is that this is based on 2022 data, not current data, and of course there are a number of indicators in that report that hold Victoria at the highest level. In terms of certificates I and II, there have been issues across the board in respect to that. That is why we established Apprenticeships Victoria, that is why we have established a taskforce – so that we can be on the balls of our feet making sure that we have got a pipeline of skilled workers. But not only that, we are encouraging young people through our vocational major in our secondary schools to seriously think about hands-on occupations, and that is exactly what we are doing. We are making sure that we have got a skills and training system that we can all be proud of, and yet given all of that, those over there are now wanting – (Time expired)