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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2008-11-25 Daily Xml
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SCHOOL INFRASTRUCTURE

Mr PISONI (Unley) (15:44): My question is again to the Minister for Education. Is the government failing to maintain state schools? Is money being diverted from schools in Port Pirie to fund government super schools?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr PISONI: The opposition is advised that maintenance work at Port Pirie West Primary School has not been carried out. The government started work on salt damp treatment in two of the older buildings, but it has since failed to return to finish the work, which has resulted in unsightly cracking.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.D. LOMAX-SMITH (Adelaide—Minister for Education, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for Tourism, Minister for the City of Adelaide) (15:45): I do think it is ironic that the member for Unley should be questioning our record on school maintenance. This is the former government that let our schools run downhill until there was a capital works maintenance backlog that was absolutely extraordinarily large.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.D. LOMAX-SMITH: We have invested in excess of $900 million in doing up public schools. We have reformed our system. We have implemented our Education Works agenda, which is extraordinarily successful. Not only is it successful but schools have fought to be part of this program. It is astounding that those opposite would try to suggest that we are under-funding capital works. Where have they been? What have they been doing? Maybe they have not been visiting public schools and seeing the investment that we have made.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Members on my left, settle down.

The Hon. J.D. LOMAX-SMITH: I can assure those in this chamber that we have a capital works program that is progressing. If capital works is stopped on one site it would be to do with local issues, maybe local tradesmen, there will be an explanation that will be perfectly rational, but to suggest that we are defunding a project in the middle of it being undertaken is just an absolute nonsense.

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