National Partnership Agreement on Skills Reform

The Hon. S.G. WADE (15:09): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills a question relating to skills job training.

Leave granted.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: The government's changes to skills training funding significantly reduce the openness and competitive nature of the training market. Under clause 6 of the National Partnership Agreement on Skills Reform, the Weatherill Labor government commits to, and I quote:

c. encouraging responsiveness in training arrangements by facilitating the operation of a more open and competitive training market;

d. enabling public providers to operate effectively in an environment of greater competition…

My questions are:

1. Given that the government's changes to skills training significantly reduce openness and competition, is the Weatherill government now in breach of the National Partnership Agreement on Skills Reform?

2. Can the minister assure the council that the government's breach of the agreement will not lead to the loss of up to $65 million in commonwealth funding?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills, Minister for Science and Information Economy, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Business Services and Consumers) (15:10): It is absolutely outrageous that Senator Simon Birmingham has threatened to in fact breach the federal government's commitment to the national partnership agreement. South Australia has complied with the national partnership agreement. We have met all our milestones and, what's more, we have exceeded most of those. We have been one of the leading jurisdictions in reforms to the VET sector.

I am absolutely confident that the WorkReady changes being proposed continue to comply with the national partnership agreement, so it's absolutely outrageous that the federal government would now seek to withhold those funds and breach their part in that agreement. They have made a unilateral agreement. They are clearly using this as a political football and for political scaremongering. It's absolutely disgraceful.

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire: They are not spending taxpayers' money on false advertising.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Absolutely disgraceful.

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order, the Hon. Mr Brokenshire!

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Those moneys go to training providers.

The PRESIDENT: Do not respond to interjections.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: It's public money.

The PRESIDENT: Speak through the Chair.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Taxpayers' money goes to training providers. It provides training.

The PRESIDENT: Can the honourable minister speak through the Chair, please. Just ignore the Hon. Mr Brokenshire.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: The federal government has unilaterally made a decision to breach its part of the agreement. South Australia has fully complied. We continue to fully comply. We fully comply, and we continue to fully comply. The federal government has indicated that they are willing to breach their part in the national partnership agreement, and it's not the first time.

No-one can trust them. They change the rules midway through, and they are prepared to do this for a bit of political grandstanding at the expense of the industry. These public moneys go into training. That's where they go—into training. Now the federal government are going to breach their part in the national—

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire: No, they're not.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: They are. They are indeed. South Australia continues to comply. The federal government are going to breach that agreement and make our training sector suffer. Shame on them!

The PRESIDENT: A supplementary from the Hon. Mr Wade.