Vocational Education and Training

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS (15:08): By way of supplementary question arising from the minister's answer, given that the minister conceded that it was up to the federal government in relation to whether it supplied funding direct to private training providers, does the minister therefore agree that, if the money was provided direct to private training providers, training could continue at equal or greater numbers in terms of total training places than under the national training/national partnership agreement?

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) (15:09): We know how sneaky the Hon. Rob Lucas can be in this place. We saw him come in yesterday waving around his Budget and Finance Committee figures that he did not have a clue about. He had no idea what those figures were or what they meant. Between them, he and the illustrious opposition leader completely misrepresented those figures. They just haven't got a clue.

Now we see the Hon. Rob Lucas coming into this place and missing the point completely. The federal government has an agreement with the South Australian government, enshrined in a national partnership agreement, and the federal government wants to renege on it. They want to walk away. They simply want to wash their hands and walk away and risk those funds not being able to be passed on to our South Australian students to help subsidise their training, to improve their employment outcomes. Shame on them, and shame on the Hon. Rob Lucas! Shame on him for not standing up for South Australian students. Shame on him for condoning his federal colleagues reneging yet again on a national partnership agreement. Shame on him!