GINA Rinehart — Australia’s richest person with a fortune of $19.2 billion — has blasted the McGowan Government’s decision to axe funding for the School of the Air as a “shameful attack” against Australian families in the bush.

In a scathing 700-word email sent to Premier Mark McGowan on Christmas Day, the mining and cattle magnate said the WA Government had “abandoned” the principles of equity and universal access “that have underpinned education in Australia”.

Camera Icon Sue Ellery Credit: Danella Bevis

She said the decision — which the Government has claimed will save $14 million a year — “illustrates that it does not understand or care about our people in the bush or our remote communities, or indeed our pastoral and related industries”.

The 85th richest person on the planet, according to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index published this week, called out the decision to pump $68 million into a new inner- city college in Subiaco and questioned why SOTA was not benefiting from “the abundant available money provided by the mining industry via Royalties for Regions.”

Ms Rinehart, who grew the family millions into billions through mining investments and now has an expanding cattle empire, warned that without high-quality learning opportunities for the children of station owners and staff there would be “no dining boom to follow the mining boom”.

SOTA operates across five separates sites in regional WA, each of which has its own principal and administration.

Students, wearing their school’s uniform, join daily classes administered online via a platform similar to Skype and have opportunities to meet their classmates and teachers at schools camps, sports carnivals and graduation ceremonies throughout the year.

Camera Icon Protesters voicing their anger over the proposed School of the Air Protest closure. Credit: Mary Meagher

SOTA teachers meet students in their own homes once or twice a year and can also be visited at their regional headquarters in Carnarvon, Kalgoorlie, Port Hedland, Geraldton and Derby.

At the end of 2018, the Government plans to transfer the 166 primary school-aged children enrolled in SOTA to the School of Isolated and Distance Education (SIDE), which operates more like a modern e-learning course.

Education Minister Sue Ellery declined to comment on using Royalties for Regions funding to save SOTA but ruled out reversing the decision, which she said would eliminate duplication of services. She promised the home visits, camps and parent training that made SOTA popular with bush families would be integrated into SIDE.

Camera Icon Extracts of the letter sent by Gina Rinehart.

“These decisions have not been made lightly and I wish I wasn’t in this position,” she said. “Face-to-face consultation with families of SOTA students will begin in early 2018 to identify each of the specific elements parents are worried they may lose, and that are important in keeping that sense of community, so we can incorporate those into SIDE.”

Ms Ellery has not provided a cost estimate for the expansion of SIDE but has previously announced the closure of six camp school sites used by both metropolitan schools and SOTA.

Isolated Children’s Parent’s Association WA president Tash Johns said bush families were angry Ms Ellery had not fronted rallies held in Karratha, Geraldton and Kalgoorlie to protest against the demise of SOTA.

“We want a complete reversal of this decision,” she said. “Being able to plan a trip to town to have face-to-face supported learning with teachers in the region is vital.

“You can’t get that over the phone and we are not going to be able travel 2000km to Perth (for support meetings).”

Opposition education spokeswoman Donna Faragher said it was clear the McGowan Government had made a mistake. “Across the board, in regional, remote and metropolitan WA, no one supports the decision,” she said.

“Even Labor’s own members are disappointed by the actions of their Government.

“The minister has shown before she is prepared to reverse a decision when she has got it manifestly wrong.

“The decision to abolish SOTA is clearly wrong and it is now incumbent on the minister to reverse it.”

School of the Air axe angers bush voters

Camera Icon Jason Homewood with son Gordon.

MID WEST cattle station owner Lara Jensen believes her children, and those of hundreds of fellow pastoralists, are being punished by a McGowan Government still fuming over its torpedoed gold tax.

Ms Jensen, who lives 80km east of Mt Magnet on Wondinong Station, is desperate for kids Gordon, two, and Alice Homewood, 11 months, to follow in her footsteps at Meekatharra School of the Air but fears they will be the casualties of a political payback campaign.

“There are hardly any Labor voters out here and there definitely aren’t going to be any left after this,” Ms Jensen said. “We all know and understand this is payback for the Nationals and Liberals not supporting the gold tax. Labor has really struck right to the heart of the bush with this decision.”

More than 1200km away at Koordarrie Station in the West Pilbara, mother-of-four Kristie de Pledge said the State Government had demonstrated it did not care about the future of children living in remote parts of the State.

She said families like her own may be left with no choice but to move off their land if the decision to defund SOTA was not reversed.

“My husband and I will not allow (Education Minister) Sue Ellery and (Premier) Mark McGowan to sacrifice our children’s future to save a mere $14 million,” she said. “We keep our schools of the air or we remove some of the people that will offer their creativity and skills for the growth of our State and our country.”

Ms Jensen, whose husband Jason Homewood works away as a fitter, spends weeks at a time alone on the station, caring for her young kids and looking after the family’s 450 cattle.

She said she made life-long friends during her time as a SOTA student and the opportunity to interact with other kids she could relate to was invaluable.