Grievance Debate

HEALTHY EATING PROGRAM

Mr PISONI (Unley) (15:40): Today I rise to speak as the shadow minister for education, but also as a parent who very proudly sends his children to government schools, both a primary school and a high school in my own district of Unley, like so many others who choose to send their children to government schools. It is all about choice on this side of politics, and I have chosen to send my children to government schools. I am very pleased to boast that so far my 14 year old daughter has been a straight A student. So, as a proud father I stand here making these comments about my disappointment with the government's attempt to remove junk food from our schools.

I refer to the instructions that have been on the website for teachers since Tuesday night. In the question and answer section of the website, the question is asked:

Do the healthy eating guidelines apply to out of school care, homework centres, vending machines, sporting events and school camps?

In response, the guidelines clearly state:

The guidelines apply for all food-related activities in a school and preschool site. This includes curriculum, canteens, food services, outsourced canteens, sporting activities, camps, excursions, homework centres, fundraising, out of school hours care, student rewards and behaviour management and vending machines.

On 27 February, the department, through Jan Andrews, the Deputy Chief Executive of Schools and Children's Services, distributed a circular that seeks to clarify the ban of junk foods. It states:

I am writing to clarify aspects of the Right Bite strategy now being implemented by our schools and preschools. The ban on junk food under the Right Bite strategy only—

and 'only' is underlined, so there is less chance of confusion here—

applies to food and drinks sold in canteens and vending machines. The ban does not include special events such as fundraisers and school celebrations.

But that is not what the website states. The website, which displayed the questions and answers a full month after this circular, states that those activities are not allowed to have junk food.

Then we have a situation of cakes being banned in schools at Gawler, and a month later the circular from Jan Andrews goes on to state:

Birthday cakes and food or drinks provided to children from home are not covered by the ban.

So, there is total confusion in the schools. So much confusion, in fact, that we are seeing an abundance of schools selling amber food and not green food. You might find the odd fruit salad but everything else comes from the freezer. As a matter of fact, I am aware of schools that have gone out and purchased extra freezers for this new healthy food line. One has got to ask oneself: if the object of this is to have additional healthy green food then why on earth are schools buying more freezers?

You can understand why people are confused because in the government guidelines—again, available on the website today—you have cakes in the amber category and cakes are also listed in the red category. How are parents, students and teachers supposed to decipher this? We have already seen Morphett Vale High School and Parkside Primary School having to close their canteen because there is no government support for this program.

When they introduced a similar program to this in Queensland there was government funding to offset any loss of profits by school canteens on which schools have become reliant—but not in South Australia. In South Australia the minister has just pulled the rug and, as a matter of fact, she told this house, through a question on notice, that there would be no financial impact on school canteens due to the new healthy guidelines.

That is wishful thinking and it displays a lack of understanding of what is going on in our public schools. It is a disgrace that it has got this far and that the minister still denies that there is a problem with the canteen program. So much so that she accuses any criticism as being an attack on the public school system. I am a strong supporter of the public school system and that is why I send my children to public schools. This minister is so out of touch that she has no idea of what is going on with her own program in South Australian schools.