Vocational Education and Training

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE (14:49): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills questions concerning TAFE training places, or I should say the lack of agricultural training places.

Leave granted.

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE: We know the debacle and the disgrace we currently have with respect to the government's initiative (so-called) to make it tough for private training providers, but the concern particularly is in rural and regional South Australia, an area where we have seen one of the few job growth opportunities of 7 per cent compounding per year over the last three years.

Recently, the minister met with training providers to discuss WorkReady issues. I have been informed that, during one of these meetings, the providers were assured that the training subsidies would still be available for Australian school-based apprentices and that training was guaranteed for traineeships with SACE students. This, by the way, is very different from published WorkReady statements.

I understand the minister has told the private providers that there have been some changes and that there will be some opportunities for those people working on farms and associated agricultural industries to still get subsidised training. However, when you drill into it, you find that all may not be as it seems. My questions are:

1. Can the minister confirm that there are definitely now only 20 training places for people working on farms and that the training places will be at the Mount Gambier TAFE campus?

2. Can the minister explain how in my own personal situation where I do have a trainee who, on this occasion, will work towards an apprenticeship, she expects to see that person trained as an apprentice if the places are at Mount Gambier and he is working at Mount Compass?

3. Can the minister explain how an apprentice farmer at Wudinna on Eyre Peninsula can get training with only 20 places available from the Mount Gambier TAFE campus?

4. Given that there are at least 150 positions for certificate III alone needed in South Australia in the next 12 months, how will this work when there are only 20 positions being made available?

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) (14:52): Again we see the honourable member come in here with confused information, but anyway I am happy to—

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS: Point of order, Mr President. I draw your attention to standing order 110 which says that in answering any question a member shall not debate the matter to which the same refers. I indicate that I believe that the minister is debating the matter rather than answering the question and ask that you rule.

The PRESIDENT: Minister, continue.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: I am just pointing out that we were presented with confused information which I will take great pleasure to sort out. The government funding in the VET sector will adequately support industry demand for skilled workers in key agriculture, food and fisheries occupations in the coming years. According to modelling undertaken by the Training and Skills Commission (TASC), industry demand for skilled workers in key agriculture, food and fisheries occupations requires the completion of 2,500 to 5,000 relevant VET courses over five years, that is to 2017-18, or between 500 and 1,000 completions a year.

Taking into account modelling by TASC of current take-up rates and completions, we are on target to ensure that the industry demand for skilled workers in key agriculture, food and fisheries occupations is met over the five years to 2017-18. We see a lot of scaremongering going on here, but since 1 July 2012, the commencement of Skills For All, 5,200 qualifications have been issued for these courses, or approximately 1,700 per year in publicly subsidised training alone. In addition, there are currently 8,500 training accounts open with students undertaking training. For the relevant agriculture, food and fisheries VET courses, which are undertaken through training contracts, in the second half of 2015 there are an unlimited number—

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire: Subsidised?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Unlimited subsidised apprenticeship funding—

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! No debate, just answer the question.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: The honourable member, as I said, comes into this place with incorrect and inaccurate, confused information. There are no caps on—

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire: I got this from the horse's mouth.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Well, you're wrong.

The PRESIDENT: Minister, don't engage with interjections.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: You are wrong as usual. As usual, Mr President, the honourable member comes into this—

The PRESIDENT: Point of order, the Hon. Ms Vincent.

The Hon. K.L. VINCENT: The minister is well aware that she should direct her comments through you.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Of course they're directed through the President—of course they are. All of my comments are directed through the President. They always are, so I don't know what the honourable member is banging on about.

The PRESIDENT: Minister, just sit down for one second, please. When a question is asked and a minister is trying to answer the question, an interjection is basically creating debate, so I call upon all members not to interject and I call upon the minister not to react so you get into a debate. Let's just answer the question and get on to the next question.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Thank you very much—

The Hon. J.S.L. DAWKINS: Point of order, Mr President.

The PRESIDENT: Point of order.

The Hon. J.S.L. DAWKINS: When points of order are brought to your attention, it is your place to respond to them. I think in many cases the minister just keeps going and ignores your right to actually respond and I think you should do that.

The PRESIDENT: As far as I know, the minister is so involved and so incredibly excited about the answer that she often doesn't hear, but the reality is, from now on, there will be no debate. Just the very fact that you interject creates a debate.

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins: No, it doesn't.

The PRESIDENT: It does create debate. If she responds, it creates a debate. If you want to debate it, we will keep on debating.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! The honourable minister, please answer the question and let's get on to the next question.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Thank you, sir, and as I was pointing out, the information that the honourable member put on the record in this place is incorrect. I have put on the record in this place before that there are an unlimited number of subsidised training places for trade-related training contracts for apprenticeships. For these trade apprenticeships, there are an unlimited number of places.

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire interjecting:

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: It is demand driven. I have come into this place time and time again—

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! The minister is trying to answer the question.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: See, they don't listen, sir. They just don't listen.

The PRESIDENT: They're out of order, so just continue.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Exactly. Thank you for your guidance. As I have said in this place before, the apprenticeships or those under contract arrangements that result in those direct jobs at the end are demand driven and that is as they have been and that is as they continue. WorkReady does not change that. So, the honourable member is just completely wrong. These can be undertaken through either TAFE SA or non-TAFE providers, and that can continue.

So, in terms of the private providers, if they go out and recruit apprenticeships in those areas, they are able to be subsidised. We see subsidised funding for that. The honourable member, as I said, is simply incorrect. It does not matter how many incorrect sources he quotes from, the information he has brought into this place is incorrect. I hope that he has finally listened and got that straight.

For courses outside the on-demand training contracts (so those outside of those apprenticeships), for 2015-16 it is estimated that the government will subsidise at least 2,000 training places for VET courses and support the agriculture, food and fisheries sector. The majority of these will go to TAFE SA, and I have made that quite clear. For non-TAFE SA providers, additional training places may be available through the Jobs First initiative, which is a submission-based element of WorkReady that will fund training courses and tailor employment projects that are directly related to real job outcomes. They can occur anywhere in the state, so whether it is the South-East, Eyre Peninsula or wherever, all the private sector training providers that are eligible can apply for training under that Jobs First initiative.