Wednesday, 18 February 2026

 Bev McARTHUR (Western Victoria) (12:52): (2143) My question to the Minister for Education relates to school bus provision in the Geelong region, which has declined to the point where a basic, dependable service for families is now unreliable, unsafe and in some cases simply non-existent. Students from Lara have been left stranded at North Geelong Secondary College. On routes to St Joseph’s and Clonard students are routinely standing on buses travelling at 80 or 100 kilometres per hour. In the rapidly growing suburb of Fyansford, families are told there is no school bus service, forcing car pools or costly rideshares. I have met with the school principal and student bus captain to discuss these failures. How did the department fail to plan for demographic change? Minister, in the shadow of recent serious school bus crashes in Western Victoria, what immediate action will you take to fix capacity and safety?