The Albanese Government’s Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) is a missed opportunity to strengthen the economy by properly investing in public schools.
Despite clear evidence of significant economic returns from investing in public schools, the Albanese Government is yet to deliver on the promise that every public school in Australia will be fully funded to 100% of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS).
AEU Federal President Correna Haythorpe said the missed opportunity from MYEFO comes despite clear evidence of the economic, social, and fiscal benefits of properly funding public education.
“The failure to fully fund public schools is clearly a case of false economy,” Ms Haythorpe said.
“While we know that increasing investment in public schools is critically important for teachers, students, and families, there are significant long-term economic benefits to providing a full 25% of the SRS.
“Fully funding schools will reap long-term benefits to Australia’s economy, productivity, and our students’ futures.
“This is money the federal government is quite literally leaving on the table.”
New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia are yet to finalise negotiations with the Federal Government on public school funding, meaning they are stuck with a 20% commonwealth contribution for the forseable future, unless the Albanese Government steps up with the full funding that was promised. This will impact deeply on the resources that public schools have for next year and beyond and limit any capacity to meet the education reform agenda that is expected by governments.
Analysis from the Centre for Future Work at the Australia Institute shows that increasing the Commonwealth’s SRS contribution to 25% from 20% would:
- deliver total GDP gains of $7.1 to $9.9 billion annually after 20 years
- create over 17,000 new jobs
- generate $2.7 billion in annual GDP gains from expanded public school activity
- improve school completion rates by 1.5 to 2.5 percentage points
- lead to wage income increases of $1.0 to $1.7 billion annually after 20 years
- achieve social and fiscal savings of $2.0 to $3.5 billion annually
- strengthen government revenue with a net fiscal gain of $1.2 to $3.0 billion.
“This is a wake-up call to the Albanese Government. Fully funding public schools is not just the right thing to do for students, teachers, and families - it is an investment that strengthens the entire economy and it is a priority for the voting population of Australia,” Haythorpe said.
MEDIA CONTACT: Kylie Jensen – 0402 298 728
18 December 2024