Mr GUNNER - 2012-11-29
It appears there may be a difference of opinion between the Chief Minister and the Treasurer about whether schools are private enterprises. Yesterday, you justified not subsidising not-for-profit schools for your price hikes because they are private enterprises. That is what you described them as. Sometimes the only school in a community is a non-government school; for example, the only school in Wadeye is a not-for-profit non-government school. Why are you unfairly targeting the Wadeye community because you consider their only school to be a private enterprise?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Fannie Bay for his question. Yesterday I answered the question very succinctly and probably did not give an adequate explanation.
Like the former Labor government in 2009, we implemented a tariff. We have offered a subsidy for government schools that will be affected by these tariff increases from 1 January next year. It is exactly what they did; it is the same level of support Labor provided to schools when they increased electricity and water charges in 2009.
They did not provide any other subsidy for any other school beyond government-owned schools. We have gone down that track. We have clearly articulated that subsidy will be in place ...
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! We did not hike up power by 30%.
Mr Westra van Holthe: You are a grub!
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Katherine! I overheard that remark. Minister, you have the call.
Mrs LAMBLEY: What the Chief Minister was talking about earlier was that there is a difference between government and non-government schools. When groups of people decide to set up a non-government school they take that risk into account - that there will be different expenses, different forms of revenue coming in, different circumstances, and it is run on a private regime as opposed to a public regime.
In answer to the question of whether we will provide subsidies to non-government schools, we are looking into it as we speak to try to provide some extra assistance. We realise it will be tough. The answer to the question the member for Fannie Bay has asked this morning will be announced next week in the mini-budget.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Fannie Bay for his question. Yesterday I answered the question very succinctly and probably did not give an adequate explanation.
Like the former Labor government in 2009, we implemented a tariff. We have offered a subsidy for government schools that will be affected by these tariff increases from 1 January next year. It is exactly what they did; it is the same level of support Labor provided to schools when they increased electricity and water charges in 2009.
They did not provide any other subsidy for any other school beyond government-owned schools. We have gone down that track. We have clearly articulated that subsidy will be in place ...
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! We did not hike up power by 30%.
Mr Westra van Holthe: You are a grub!
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Katherine! I overheard that remark. Minister, you have the call.
Mrs LAMBLEY: What the Chief Minister was talking about earlier was that there is a difference between government and non-government schools. When groups of people decide to set up a non-government school they take that risk into account - that there will be different expenses, different forms of revenue coming in, different circumstances, and it is run on a private regime as opposed to a public regime.
In answer to the question of whether we will provide subsidies to non-government schools, we are looking into it as we speak to try to provide some extra assistance. We realise it will be tough. The answer to the question the member for Fannie Bay has asked this morning will be announced next week in the mini-budget.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016