From ‘Con-ski’ to Gonski 2.0: education plan passes the Senate

In the early hours of Friday morning Senators passed the governments new education funding plan, ensuring over $23 billion flowing to schools by 2023.

Following negotiations by the Greens, the crossbench managed to force an extra $5 billion, a shorter funding timeline and the creation of an independent body to oversee the funding.

The apparent embrace of the Gonski formula is a turnaround for the government, whose former Education Minister Christopher Pyne once derided Labor’s implementation of the scheme as ‘a Con-ski’.

Many experts have welcomed the plan, but still see problems in the design of the funding model.

 

Producers:

• Steven Riggall

Speakers:

• Glenn Savage - Senior Lecturer in Education Policy
• University of Melbourne