PRESS RELEASE 767
PRIVATE SCHOOLS CORNERING THE MARKET IN ‘NEEDFULNESS’
Current billions funnelled into the private education industry by our Lib/Lab politicians is a continuation of continual lobbying for the private education sector’s market share of ‘needfulness’. Genuine ‘need’ for disadvantaged children has nothing to do with it.
Our Lib/Lab politicians caved in to religious lobbyists in the 1970s and abandoned the century old ‘No State Aid’ policy with its corollary ofSeparation of Church and State in Australia. The smoke screen for the pouring of millions, then billions of money into inefficient, wealthy, and never-to-be-satisfied religious coffers have been a series of failed ‘Need” policies.
“Need’ for religious schools has long since become code for ‘needfulness’. Religious schools are not for the poor and disadvantaged. Religious orders like the Christian Brothers were set up for the children of the poor in Ireland, but we are now discovering that, in both Australia and Ireland, they preyed upon defenceless children.
Private schools have always opposed ‘free, secular and universal’ education. They have always discriminated against students and teachers on the basis of class, creed, sexuality and anything else that offends their ‘value’ system. They welcome ‘free enterprise’ marketeering, lobbying for advantage, and lack of accountability. Demands for ever more billions merely reflect their ‘needfulness’ in a resource race for market share of wealthy and aspirational Australian parents. Morrison’s latest cash splash is evidence of their lobbying power – at public expense.
Since the 1970s public schools, deprived of basic facilities, have watched in disbelief as funding they require for their disadvantaged students is diverted into wealthy schools. The Catholic sector, forever crying poor, are demanding their market share of the Olympic swimming pools, sporting ovals and ‘wellness’ centres in the wealthy Protestant schools.
The basic problem is – education of our Australian children is not and should not be placed at the whim of marketeering in ‘needfulness’. There are disadvantaged children in need of a first class education in Australia. But they are in the public system. The Save Our Schools and other public school supporters are mourning the demise of the latest version of the ‘Needs’ policy – the Gonski model. Their financial analysis is very valuable, and is reproduced below, but their premise is mistaken. A genuine ‘Needs’ policy is not and never has been possible.
Public funds should be for public schools only and private schools should be left to their market laid up in heaven.
Morrison Puts More Nails in the Coffin of Gonski
Friday October 12, 2018
Trevor Cobbold: Save Our Schools
Thisis a new Education Policy Brief from Trevor Cobbold published by Save Our Schools. It can be downloaded below at http://www.saveourschools.com.au/funding/morrison-puts-more-nails-in-the-coffin-of-gonski
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