Mr ADAMSON - 1995-10-19
Has the Commonwealth government withheld funds that were promised last year for capital works in Northern Territory schools this year?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, it is a pleasure to be asked a question on education. The opposition ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HATTON: I regret to have to inform the House that so far the Commonwealth has withheld money allocated for capital works which should have proceeded in Territory schools this year. The Commonwealth's reason for withholding the funding, which amounts to more than $2.4m, is that the Northern Territory government cannot accept new rules the Commonwealth wants to impose on us about how the money is to be spent.
The new conditions arise from the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. They relate to mandatory employment and training opportunities for Aboriginals, and the involvement of Aboriginal communities in tenders for capital works projects. The training and employment conditions apply to all areas of Australia where Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders comprise 10% or more of unemployed people. This covers the whole of the Northern Territory and parts of Western Australia, South Australia, Queensland and New South Wales. Victoria, Tasmania and the ACT are not affected at all.
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Tenders for capital projects over the value of $10 000, including capital works, refurbishment, minor new works and repairs and maintenance, must include employment and training opportunities for Aboriginals acceptable to the Commonwealth Employment Service. On the face of it, this sounds reasonable until we learn that the Commonwealth government will not tell us what it means by `acceptable training and employment opportunities'. For the first 6 months of this year, while seeking our agreement to the new conditions, the federal government deflected any inquiries on this issue. We were told that it was still developing the criteria for the training and employment proposals on which capital works tenders would be accepted or rejected. In August, following numerous requests, we were provided finally with a draft. The draft still does not tell us how the CES intends to apply the requirements in the Northern Territory. This continues to be the situation.
The Commonwealth expects us to enter into the agreement without knowing what effect it will have on our schools or our communities. It seems to me that the federal government is seeking to involve my department, school councils and the Department of Transport and Works in a new money-chasing game in which it intends to make up the rules as it goes along. It does not matter to the Commonwealth because, at the end of the day, it will still have the right of veto over the selection of the successful tenderer in relation to tenders initiated by Northern Territory schools.
Under the second set of conditions, all capital works projects in an Aboriginal community must involve that community in evaluating the quotations or tenders. While the total amount of money concerned, the $2.4m I mentioned earlier, is relatively small at this stage, these conditions are a harbinger of new attempts by the current federal government to control or impede development in the Northern Territory. We have received information now that the federal government intends to apply similar conditions to a wide range of capital grants in future years. During negotiations, our departmental officers learnt that the new conditions imposed on this funding may well become the norm for all federally-funded capital works in the Northern Territory next year. The conditions concerning the involvement of Aboriginal communities in the evaluation of tenders ignore the option of self-management available to them. In the meantime, the Commonwealth will not relent on its stance. It will not release the money unless we agree to Territory school councils losing their say over tenders in order to allow the Commonwealth unfettered control.
At this stage, it appears unlikely that savings to compensate for the loss of the 1995 grant can be found in the Department of Education's 1995-96 budget. Capital works projects planned for this year were approved with the expectation that this Commonwealth payment would be included in the funding.
Members should to realise that, as a matter of practicality, given devolution to school councils, we need to provide them with guidelines on tendering for capital projects, including repairs and maintenance and minor new works. We cannot write those guidelines unless the Commonwealth tells us what the rules are. Because the Commonwealth will not tell us what the rules are, we are unable to advise the school councils. It is totally untenable for the Northern Territory to be placed in this position and schools will be hurt in the process. We urge the federal government to defer implementing these conditions until such time as a fair and reasonable process is in place that will not bind school councils to massive bureaucracy and costs. School councils need to be able to continue the job of delivering educational
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facilities, using the funding that is earmarked as being available for the Northern Territory. It is reasonable to say that, if the Commonwealth wants us to impose rules, it must at least tell us what they are. Not to do so is extraordinarily unreasonable.
I was shocked yesterday to discover that the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Employment, Education and Training, who happens also to be the federal member for the Northern Territory, claimed not even to be aware that this is happening. This is notwithstanding the fact that the federal Minister for Schools, Vocational Education and Training, Hon Ross Free, has refused totally to bend, despite his own department's recommendations to consider deferral or adopt the best practice approach in the meantime. I advise schools that development of their facilities is being placed at risk by this extraordinarily arrogant and unreasonable approach by the federal government. It would be really good if the member for the Northern Territory began to do something for the Northern Territory for a change rather than merely being an apologist for his federal mates.
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ANSWER
Mr Speaker, it is a pleasure to be asked a question on education. The opposition ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HATTON: I regret to have to inform the House that so far the Commonwealth has withheld money allocated for capital works which should have proceeded in Territory schools this year. The Commonwealth's reason for withholding the funding, which amounts to more than $2.4m, is that the Northern Territory government cannot accept new rules the Commonwealth wants to impose on us about how the money is to be spent.
The new conditions arise from the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. They relate to mandatory employment and training opportunities for Aboriginals, and the involvement of Aboriginal communities in tenders for capital works projects. The training and employment conditions apply to all areas of Australia where Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders comprise 10% or more of unemployed people. This covers the whole of the Northern Territory and parts of Western Australia, South Australia, Queensland and New South Wales. Victoria, Tasmania and the ACT are not affected at all.
Page 917
Tenders for capital projects over the value of $10 000, including capital works, refurbishment, minor new works and repairs and maintenance, must include employment and training opportunities for Aboriginals acceptable to the Commonwealth Employment Service. On the face of it, this sounds reasonable until we learn that the Commonwealth government will not tell us what it means by `acceptable training and employment opportunities'. For the first 6 months of this year, while seeking our agreement to the new conditions, the federal government deflected any inquiries on this issue. We were told that it was still developing the criteria for the training and employment proposals on which capital works tenders would be accepted or rejected. In August, following numerous requests, we were provided finally with a draft. The draft still does not tell us how the CES intends to apply the requirements in the Northern Territory. This continues to be the situation.
The Commonwealth expects us to enter into the agreement without knowing what effect it will have on our schools or our communities. It seems to me that the federal government is seeking to involve my department, school councils and the Department of Transport and Works in a new money-chasing game in which it intends to make up the rules as it goes along. It does not matter to the Commonwealth because, at the end of the day, it will still have the right of veto over the selection of the successful tenderer in relation to tenders initiated by Northern Territory schools.
Under the second set of conditions, all capital works projects in an Aboriginal community must involve that community in evaluating the quotations or tenders. While the total amount of money concerned, the $2.4m I mentioned earlier, is relatively small at this stage, these conditions are a harbinger of new attempts by the current federal government to control or impede development in the Northern Territory. We have received information now that the federal government intends to apply similar conditions to a wide range of capital grants in future years. During negotiations, our departmental officers learnt that the new conditions imposed on this funding may well become the norm for all federally-funded capital works in the Northern Territory next year. The conditions concerning the involvement of Aboriginal communities in the evaluation of tenders ignore the option of self-management available to them. In the meantime, the Commonwealth will not relent on its stance. It will not release the money unless we agree to Territory school councils losing their say over tenders in order to allow the Commonwealth unfettered control.
At this stage, it appears unlikely that savings to compensate for the loss of the 1995 grant can be found in the Department of Education's 1995-96 budget. Capital works projects planned for this year were approved with the expectation that this Commonwealth payment would be included in the funding.
Members should to realise that, as a matter of practicality, given devolution to school councils, we need to provide them with guidelines on tendering for capital projects, including repairs and maintenance and minor new works. We cannot write those guidelines unless the Commonwealth tells us what the rules are. Because the Commonwealth will not tell us what the rules are, we are unable to advise the school councils. It is totally untenable for the Northern Territory to be placed in this position and schools will be hurt in the process. We urge the federal government to defer implementing these conditions until such time as a fair and reasonable process is in place that will not bind school councils to massive bureaucracy and costs. School councils need to be able to continue the job of delivering educational
Page 918
facilities, using the funding that is earmarked as being available for the Northern Territory. It is reasonable to say that, if the Commonwealth wants us to impose rules, it must at least tell us what they are. Not to do so is extraordinarily unreasonable.
I was shocked yesterday to discover that the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Employment, Education and Training, who happens also to be the federal member for the Northern Territory, claimed not even to be aware that this is happening. This is notwithstanding the fact that the federal Minister for Schools, Vocational Education and Training, Hon Ross Free, has refused totally to bend, despite his own department's recommendations to consider deferral or adopt the best practice approach in the meantime. I advise schools that development of their facilities is being placed at risk by this extraordinarily arrogant and unreasonable approach by the federal government. It would be really good if the member for the Northern Territory began to do something for the Northern Territory for a change rather than merely being an apologist for his federal mates.
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Last updated: 09 Aug 2016