PM says the government is ‘delivering handsomely’ on affordable choices for non-state schools

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Scott Morrison has defended a $1.2bn fund for Catholic and independent schools in the face of dissent by the New South Wales education minister and a warning from experts and Labor that it amounts to a “slush fund”.

The prime minister told ABC’s AM on Friday that the fund would help “drought-affected areas” and “Catholic schools in less-fortunate areas”, suggesting it would top up funding after “the Catholic system makes its decision about how it spreads its resources”.

On Thursday Morrison and the education minister, Dan Tehan, unveiled a package of $4.6bn over 10 years earmarked for Catholic and independent schools, including the $1.2bn choice and affordability fund to be allocated for government priorities including diversity, regional, rural and remote education.

Guardian Australia understands from sources in the Catholic and independent schools sectors that Catholic schools will receive $718m over a decade from the fund while independent schools will get $485m.

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Labor’s education spokeswoman, Tanya Plibersek, said the fund “looks very much” like a $1.2bn “slush fund” for non-government schools and called on the government to explain its purpose.

The Grattan Institute schools director, Peter Goss, called the package a “special deal” for the non-government sectors, and said the “biggest part of the special deal is the $1.2bn slush fund”.

“What I’ve heard so far, at least some of it might be used to keep fees low at a certain group of schools – Catholic primary schools where parents have high incomes,” he told ABC radio’s AM program.

The NSW education minister, Rob Stokes, said he “won’t be signing any deal that doesn’t treat every student and every school with fairness”.

“The Gonski principles provide that school funding should be needs-based and sector-blind and these are the principles we hold dear,” he said.

“We don’t want a return to the school funding wars of the past that pitted private schools against public schools, and urge the federal government to provide equal treatment for all schools – public and private.”

His Queensland counterpart, Grace Grace, also threatened to “not sign up to any agreement” unless the federal government committed to more spending for public schools. While the government’s funding commitment does not require the states’ approval, they could potentially derail a long-term government school funding agreement.

“While I don’t begrudge non-state schools receiving additional new funding, we want to ensure public schools receive their fair share of increased funding as well,” she said.

“Given nearly 70% of Queensland students attend state schools, I cannot accept there has been no new additional funding committed for the public system.

“We will not sign up to any agreement until this inequity is addressed because we want a fair deal for all Queensland students – this funding mess is far from resolved.”

Victoria’s education minister, James Merlino, said the “devil will be in the detail”.

“This is one mess that is still far from fixed,” he said.

“There are a number of issues which are still to be resolved, including the federal government funding the final 5% of the student resource standard to ensure government and non-government schools are funded equally.”

Similarly, ACT education minister Yvette Berry said she supported “needs-based, sector-blind school funding”, but welcomed elements of the deal.

“I supported a review of the socio-economic status component [of the Schooling Resource Standard] because the model has always struggled to reflect true need in the ACT’s diverse suburbs,” she said.

“It is important that any alternative is robust and not open to manipulation and I look forward to the Commonwealth being more open about their proposal and the underlying modelling so that the ACT can interrogate it.”

Morrison said the $4.6bn package said outside agreements with the states and had “no impact on the state governments’ arrangements”.

“I don’t think Rob [Stokes] has yet had a chance to look at the full details of this … I’m sure once he sees that he’ll see that those comments don’t weigh up with what we’ve actually announced,” Morrison said.

“He’ll understand that it’s good for all schools to be getting more support. This is a needs-based approach … ensuring that parents’ actual income is what is driving funding decisions.”

Morrison said the government was “delivering handsomely” on its aim that “there should be affordable choices for non-state schools”.

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Asked about the $1.2bn choice and affordability fund, Morrison said it was for “a number of priorities”, including supporting children in drought-affected areas, which he had discussed with the Catholic archbishop of Sydney, Anthony Fisher.

He said the fund was to deal with unforeseen “needs and circumstances” over the next decade and would ensure that “Catholic schools in less fortunate areas … continue to get the support”.

“As you know the Catholic system makes decision about how it spreads its resources that are provided to it – that’s been a longstanding arrangement.

“This will ensure that I think all of those schools will continue to get the support their parents would expect them to get.”

Guardian Australia understands that the $1.2bn fund was not on the table until the last month, and was therefore an initiative created after Morrison took the Liberal leadership from Malcolm Turnbull and Tehan replaced Simon Birmingham as education minister.