Victorian students are paying the price for Andrews broken promises on school upgrade funding.
Education aministrators are telling schools to hold back on projects. Only one third of the $890m 2022 election promise has been delivered (as measured by funds allocated). Parents and school communities have been conned.
This education con smells like the Comm Games con, both promised by Andrews to garner votes.
The Vic Labor government led by Andrews 2.0 clone Jacinta Allan has run out of ideas, run out of money and run out of energy.
Vic Labor cannot manage money and cannot manage projects.
See article blow published today.
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Dozens of school upgrades could miss out in budget ‘bloodbath’
ByRachel Eddie and Annika Smethurst
April 20, 2024 — 5.00am The Age
Dozens of promised school upgrades face major delays as education and government sources warn the state’s financial squeeze will lead to a funding “bloodbath” for the projects in the May budget.
Victorian Labor had committed $850 million to upgrade at least 89 primary and secondary schools on the state election campaign trail in 2022, but more than half failed to secure funding to put shovels in the ground in last year’s budget.
Then-premier Daniel Andrews announces the schools package on the campaign trail during the 2022 election campaign, with Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny (left).CREDIT
ENNY STEPHENS
The Age has confirmed that education officials have in recent weeks contacted some schools and told them not to proceed with any more work until after the May budget, due in just over a fortnight, while others were told work would need to be re-scoped because plans had come in over budget.
Cabinet ministers, MPs and education sources, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential matters, warned dozens of projects were at risk of being delayed or re-scoped as the Allan government looks to slash spending. “It’s a bit of a bloodbath,” said one source with knowledge of school funding.
A source from a Melbourne-based school said they were told to wait until after next month’s budget to proceed with planned works because there was a chance planned upgrades might not proceed.
In the lead-up to the 2022 election, the state government promised to upgrade 89 schools including $6.8 million for Kosciuszko Street Primary in Traralgon, $11.7 million for Leongatha Secondary College, and $13.1 million for Edenhope College.
“You can’t get a first-rate education in a second-rate classroom,” then-premier Daniel Andrews said in October 2022,
announcing the package at Seaford North Primary, which was promised an upgrade but has so far received only planning cash.
Funding for capital works was not allocated for the majority of projects in last year’s budget. Instead, 54 schools shared in $24 million for planning, angering local members whose electorates missed out on cash for capital works.
Upgrade and modernisation projects at the planning stage were those widely expected to be held back; only those with shovels in the ground were considered safe. One education sector source said there was particular concern for projects that were yet to put their projects to tender or sign contracts.
Those 54 upgrade and modernisation projects were all still listed by the Victorian School Building Authority as “subject to future funding”.
The government has maintained that all election promises, including the school upgrades, will be delivered, but has
pushed back deadlines on other unrelated projects. Labor never put a timeline on the school upgrades, which are managed by the School Building Authority, giving the government extra wiggle room to delay.
“Historically, we would usually be further along on these projects at this stage of the election cycle,” one cabinet minister said.
Two government sources and one school source said funding for dozens of upgrades, as many as 85 and potentially up to 100, was in doubt.
Fifty-four schools shared in $24 million in planning funds, and are all listed as subject to future funding.CREDIT:VICTORIAN SCHOOL BUILDING AUTHORITY
Another said the necessary planning for each project generally took over a year and pointed out there was always an open deadline for the promise. It would be shocking if dozens of schools never progressed, they said, because communities would be unforgiving.
Deputy Premier Ben Carroll, the Education Minister, visited two of the schools promised new upgrades this week – Fitzroy Primary and Heidelberg Primary.
A government spokeswoman said the budget would be handed down on May 7 to deliver election promises, including every school upgrade.
“We have opened 75 schools since 2019 and delivered more than 1950 upgrades to give every Victorian child the best education, close to home. We’ll continue to deliver the best school facilities right around the state,” she said.
“We fund school infrastructure projects in stages, with funding often allocated across multiple budget cycles. It is not uncommon for election commitments to be met in the later years of an electoral term – but we will deliver on every promised school upgrade to give Victorian kids the best education.”
The specific projects expected to remain unfunded in this budget are not clear. Upgrades that missed out on funding could still be backed later in the term, and some within Labor were keen to point out this would not be a broken promise.
Another 43 schools also shared $266 million for capital works in last year’s budget to upgrade classrooms and facilities, under the upgrade and modernisation stream, which have progressed to the design phase and have estimated completion dates.
All new school builds are expected to continue as planned.
But construction under the Best Start, Best Life package, to build early learning centres and kindergarten infrastructure, is expected to be slowed significantly.
Pressure in the construction sector, not just budgetary woes, has also delayed work while government projects and residential builders compete for dwindling labourers and supplies. Last year’s state budget allowed for $30 million in contingencies for 13 school upgrades because of market escalation in the construction sector.
The opposition spokeswoman for education, Jess Wilson, said delays to much-needed school upgrades would be a direct consequence of what she described as Labor’s financial mismanagement.
“By secretly suspending these upgrades, Labor is softening the ground to break a key election promise to schools across Victoria,” Wilson said.
“Labor cannot manage money, cannot manage school infrastructure and Victorian students are paying the price.”
