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Education, Science & Innovation

Education, Science & Innovation

The Greens believe a responsible government should foster a strong, vibrant, top-quality public education system that is fee free from preschool to university. This is the kind of vision that the Greens bring to the debate. It is an affordable vision and it is a responsible vision. For less money than this government spends each year on the diesel fuel rebate the government could make this a reality.

The Greens believe in access to university based on merit, not your ability to pay. Our vision is to abolish all course fees for domestic students. That means no upfront fees and no more HECS. All of us have a right to a high quality, fair education system, and the first step is to make it free.

Financial hardship should not be a barrier to academic success. Yet the cost of education has gone up and there are more students today living in poverty or working long hours on top of their studies. The Greens recognise the student financial support system needs an overhaul. As a first step we would give all students an allowance for software and books, extend rent assistance to Austudy recipients and return Abstudy to its 1996 levels.

So what just happened with the National Academy of Music?

Blog Post | Christine Milne
Tuesday 9th December 2008, 3:28pm
by TimHollo in

Yesterday, after a whirlwind six week campaign, Melbourne Uni and the National Academy of Music put out a statement the upshot of which is that the full 2009 program that the Academy had planned to run will now be run, with Brett Dean as Artistic Director, staying in its existing location, key staff remaining the same, and places to be offered to existing students. A new independent board will be appointed with a view to determining the Academy's long-term programming.

Sounds an awful lot like a complete reversal of Peter Garrett's decision to close the Academy on October 22. So how come the Minister's spokesperson told AAP last night that

Academy emerges from clash

Newsflash | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Tuesday 9th December 2008, 9:11am
in
View this item

National Academy's music lives on!

Feature | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Monday 8th December 2008, 5:00pm
in
Musicians from the National Academy rehearse in the Greens Party Room

After a whirlwind 6 week campaign, it has been announced that the National Academy of Music will remain open for 2009, running its full planned program, with Brett Dean as Artistic Director.

The Rudd Government is trying to pretend that it has not done a backflip on this,

National Academy's music lives on!

Media Release | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Monday 8th December 2008, 2:49pm
in

The Australian Greens are today celebrating the reprieve for the National Academy of Music, after the Rudd Government effectively reversed its decision to close the world-renowned school.

The Prime Minister's office, which became involved when the Greens invited students and staff of the Academy to Canberra last week, has intervened to keep the school open and running its full planned program for 2009, with plans for a new independent board to secure its long-term future over the course of the year.

"They say that music hath charms to soothe the savage breast, and no-one who has heard the beautiful music the Academy produces could consider closing it down," said Australian Greens Deputy Leader and Arts Spokesperson, Senator Christine Milne.

Taking note of Min Wong's answer on National Academy of Music 2

Speech | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Monday 8th December 2008, 11:55am
in

Senator MILNE (Tasmania) (3:13 PM) -I rise today to take note of the answer from Senator Wong pertaining to the decision by the Rudd government to close the Australian National Academy of Music. I want to say at the start that this is a shameful decision. It is an unjustified decision. Ever since the minister made it, he has been hiding in his office and failing to justify to anybody why he made the decision. What is even more disgraceful is that he implied for a long time that it was because the internal reviews of the academy had in some way suggested or recommended that it should be closed, when in fact both internal reviews said the academy should be better funded than it is now and should be expanded, not be closed.

SCHOOLS ASSISTANCE BILL 2008 - Consideration of House of Representatives Message

Speech | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Thursday 4th December 2008, 12:00am
in

Senator MILNE (Tasmania) (11:37 AM) -I wish to indicate I will not be supporting the amendment. I think it is fairly clear now that the coalition has said that it is supporting the bill with the national curriculum in it, and so it should be. The Greens have made it very clear from the start that this is an integral part of this legislation as far as we are concerned. A national curriculum is a national curriculum. Once you start going down the track of saying that you also recognise a broadly alternative curriculum, you do not have a national curriculum; you have a curriculum and any other curriculum that anyone thinks is broadly equivalent. So we will not be supporting the amendment. It is a mechanism for gutting the notion of a national curriculum, and we will not live with it. We will not support legislation with such an amendment in it because it destroys the whole notion of a national curriculum.

National Curriculum needs equal and adequate funding

Media Release | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Wednesday 3rd December 2008, 11:45am
in

A national uniform curriculum will fail to deliver more uniform educational outcomes unless it is backed up with equal and adequate funding, the Australian Greens said today.

"Kevin Rudd's Education Revolution needs to be about much more than a stoush over private school funding and a national curriculum," said Australian Greens Deputy Leader and Education Spokesperson, Senator Christine Milne.

"The Greens support the development and implementation of a national curriculum, and support its inclusion as a condition of funding for non-government schools.

Second Reading Speech on Schools Funding Bill

Speech | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Tuesday 2nd December 2008, 5:01pm
in

Senator MILNE (Tasmania) (12.46 pm)-I rise today to speak on the Schools Assistance Bill 2008. In that context I would like to make a few remarks to begin with about the education revolution. I think that an education revolution ought to have a vision. It ought to have some excitement. As Eleanor Roosevelt once said, ‘I don't want to be part of your revolution unless I can dance.'

Frankly, I do not feel like dancing as part of the Rudd government's education revolution.

Why 'revitalise' what is already so vital? Students bring music to Parliament

Media Release | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Tuesday 2nd December 2008, 4:23pm
in

The Government is in damage control over the ill-advised decision to close the Australian National Academy of Music, and the Prime Minister must immediately step in to impose at least a 12 month moratorium on the decision, the Australian Greens said today.

In answering a question from Australian Greens Deputy Leader and Arts Spokesperson, Senator Christine Milne, Senator Wong once again denigrated the Academy by telling the students and staff present in the gallery that the world-class institution needed to be "revitalised".

"Anyone who has heard the wonderful music echoing through the corridors of Parliament today will understand that there is nothing about these students that needs to be revitalised," Senator Milne said.

EDUCATION LEGISLATION AMENDMENT BILL 2008 - SCHOOLS ASSISTANCE BILL 2008 - In Committee

Debate Transcript | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Tuesday 2nd December 2008, 12:00am
in

SCHOOLS ASSISTANCE BILL 2008

Bill-by leave-taken as a whole.

Senator IAN MACDONALD -Minister, you have already indicated that you will give me the assurances which I sought. I thought that if I could get those assurances and just understand on what basis those assurances are given then I will be out of the debate and will leave it to people who have a lot of amendments and other issues to raise. But, Minister, I would not accept you are well versed and competent to do it, and I will say a few things while your officials are getting here. I am very concerned, on advice from those involved, that this bill will mean a massive reduction in funding for Catholic boarding schools, particularly in the diocese of Townsville, which are the schools that educate the greatest number of Indigenous people in Australia.

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