Thursday, 11 September 2025

Western Victoria Region

Joe McCRACKEN (Western Victoria) (12:42): (1835) My question is for the Minister for Education. As the minister may know, there was a huge protest in Ballarat yesterday out the front of the member for Wendouree’s office, protesting the $2.3 billion cuts to education funding. I would have thought the Labor Party would have loved to embrace their union members yesterday as they protested against their own government’s cuts. The head of the union Mr Mullaly has said:

Right now, Victoria’s public schools are the lowest funded in the country, and our teachers are the lowest paid, with education support staff and school leaders also undervalued.

I would never have thought that the Labor Party would undervalue education like they do in Victoria. It is just an absolute disgrace. So my question to the minister is: when will they restore the $2.3 billion worth of funding and answer to my constituents in Ballarat?