THE O’Farrell government decided that cutting $1.7 billion from the NSW education budget was going to “make NSW no. 1 again”.
So this is how the school funding cuts will affect you. Cutting $1.7 billion from public schools, Catholic schools, independent schools and TAFE colleges; 1800 teachers, TAFE teachers and support staff to be sacked; TAFE fees to increase by 9.5 per cent; and in a particularly petty move, the government will stop subsidising fine arts courses at TAFE, 1629 primary schools, 67 central schools in the smallest communities in this state, 398 high schools, 113 schools for special purposes that deal with the most vulnerable children and their families, and every independent and Catholic school in NSW.
Every single school, in every community across the state will be affected by these cuts.
Mr Anderson, are you going to stand up and be counted and vote against this absurdity or follow your predecessors to an election loss?
Just remember the people who elected you didn’t vote for this raw deal.
PETER LAWLER
TAMWORTH