SKILLS FOR ALL

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Treasurer, Minister for Employment, Training and Further Education) (14:16): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: Today I released the Skills for All white paper as the new blueprint for the vocational education and training system in South Australia. Skills for All is one of the five priority reform areas for this state government, and it has been developed through extensive consultation with interested parties after the release of the green paper last year.

The South Australian government is focused on strengthening our strong economic foundations to position the state for sustainable growth; however, there is more to be done. South Australia, like the rest of the nation, continues to face challenges in meeting its workforce and economic goals, with the opportunity to achieve high rates of sustained growth and realise the major economic and social benefits these will deliver. But first we need even more people to participate in the workforce, and we need more people within the workforce to develop better skills. We need to transform ourselves into a highly skilled community to meet the needs of our changing economy and labour market, and this is what I have announced today. It does not matter whether you are a school leaver, a mum coming back into the workforce, or a worker who is just looking for a better job; we will invest in you to get the skills that you need.

The vocation, education and training system has an important role to play in maximising our social and economic opportunities. Global competition means that the state's traditional industrial platform is changing; new industries and skill demands are emerging. It is critical that we have a training system that can respond to these needs. That is why the government has made an unprecedented additional investment in training of $194 million to support an extra 100,000 training places. We want to make sure that South Australians have the skills and the capacity necessary to take up the 100,000 additional jobs being created over the next six years. This commitment is important to ensure the continued prosperity of our state, backed by a strong workforce with the required skills needed by existing and new and emerging industries.

Education, training and employment are fundamental concerns for all South Australians. Through our continued investment in the education and training of our community, we will build the foundations for South Australia to enjoy social and economic prosperity. The message from our consultation is quite clear: the training system needs to be simpler and it needs to be easier to access. Through Skills for All we will reform the training system to create one that is modern, flexible and equipped to deliver the breadth and depth of skills necessary to support the evolving economy.

The new system will be simpler to access and easy to navigate, better supporting people to enter training and progress to high qualifications. Our aim is to provide more opportunities for people to enter and continue training to develop the skills that will enhance their employment options. Under Skills for All, students will be able to choose their preapproved training provider and will be able to access fully-funded training up to and including certificate II level in areas of industry demand. Significant subsidies will also be available to students in those higher level courses where jobs are most in demand.

Important apprenticeship trade courses like motor trades, plumbing and electrical will be much cheaper for students; and, in some cases, about $1,000. The extra funding will mean more students will be able to access subsidised training, and many of the current restrictions will be removed that will make the system a lot simpler. Students and employers will have more say than ever before in the training they want—their jobs for the future.

There will be renewed partnership with industry, with employers, to make sure there is a connection between training and jobs, employers and training providers. For industry and employers the system will be more focused on meeting the needs of its users, industry will be better able to co-invest with the government in upskilling the workforce, and there will be an increased focus and support for career development and workforce development in the industry.

Over the next six years the government will invest $6.4 million in additional funding for foundation skills through adult community education. This will create training places for South Australians who want assistance with their literacy and numeracy so that they can then access higher-level training and jobs.

As well as additional funding for ACE and providers to provide learning support services for students facing barriers to learning, there will be more support than ever before. As the public provider, TAFE SA will have an important role in delivering the skill needs of the economy into the future, with training activity likely to increase.

We are putting more money than ever before into TAFE SA through a $200 million investment in new facilities and campus upgrades, including the $125 million Sustainable Industries Education Centre at Tonsley. Under Skills for All, TAFE SA will have more autonomy, more flexibility and better capacity to respond to market needs and to compete for revenue under reforms to revitalise and modernise the training sector. These changes will help TAFE to prosper in an increasingly contestable funding market.

Changes to the training system will be implemented progressively over the next four years, and I am confident that, through Skills for All, the South Australian vocational education and training sector will be transformed to make it more responsive to the needs of students and industry and better linked to schools and to universities, which is so important. Once carried out, Skills for All will mean more people in training, greater choice for training providers, better skills, more jobs and, ultimately, a much stronger economy.