As somebody who came from a very humble household and obtained a university degree before the Whitlam era I'm really sick of being told by Labor that only they give an education to the battler's family. It goes on forever - Gillard was one of the worse and now Shorten.
Neither side seem to know much about humility when it comes to access to education these days.
Access to Education should depend solely on merit and not on the size of your parent's wallet.
Labor’s frontbench, too, is a mostly private-school affair Dylan Barber | Dec 20, 2013 12:34PM | EMAIL | PRINT
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With education reforms given an unclear future, the spotlight has been on Tony Abbott’s private school-dominated cabinet. But a Crikey survey by Dylan Barber finds that the Labor shadow ministry isn’t the bastion of public-school alumni you might think.
Earlier this week a Crikey survey revealed that 82% of Tony Abbott’s cabinet went to a private school. With around 35% of Australian students in private education, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, and education reforms still up in the air, the old boys’ club is alive and well at the elite level of politics.
But Labor ministries are not the bastions of public education you might assume. Crikey has conducted the same survey for Bill Shorten’s shadow frontbench, and we’ve found 53% of went to private schools (though many don’t compare to the expensive ivy-league schools attended by Abbott’s old boys).
This is the latest shift towards private education for our top pollies. The various Rudd and Gillard ministries were all around the 50/50 split, but since 2007?—?with the exception of Anthony Albanese (St Mary’s Cathedral College)?—?the ALP leader and deputy have tended to come from a public-school background. Don’t forget though that Kevin Rudd did a two-year stint at Marist Brothers Ashgrove.
Bill Shorten ?—? who went to the private Xavier College?—?breaks the mould somewhat. Not since Gough Whitlam has an ALP leader graduated from a private school (Paul Keating attended LaSalle College, but dropped out aged 15).
The Opposition Leader’s Jesuit education puts him in the company of Liberal frontbenchers Tony Abbott, Barnaby Joyce, Joe Hockey and Christopher Pyne. And Shorten’s alma mater is not cheap; one of only four Jesuit schools in Australia, Xavier College fees reached $23,060 this year.
The majority of the 10 Labor frontbenchers with a private education come from Catholic schools. However, many had annual tuition fees below $8000, some as low as $1959 (Albanese)?—?a far cry from the multiple $20,000+ fees of the Coalition frontbench.
Two exceptions are Scotch College (shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus), and Geelong Grammar (opposition immigration spokesman Richard Marles).
Year 12 tuition at Scotch College set you back $26,556 this year; to some that would be justified by an alumni that boasts a former prime minister, three governors-general, four High Court justices and more Order of Australia recipients than any other Australian school.
Geelong Grammar, the exclusive college of media moguls Rupert Murdoch and Kerry Packer, former PM John Gorton and Prince Charles, tops the list at $32,400, meaning Marles pips Defence Minister David Johnston at the post for “most expensive frontbench education” in either major party. Johnston’s alma mater, Wesley College, falls just shy at $32,061.
With education a traditional pillar of Labor values, will the slight shift towards a private education for the frontbench signal a change in how the party handles education policy over time?
Opposition? Leader Bill Shorten PRIVATE Xavier College, Melbourne Yr 12 fees: $23,060 Deputy Leader, spokeswoman for foreign affairs Tanya Plibersek PUBLIC Jannali Girls High, South Sydney Senate Opposition Leader, spokeswoman for trade Penny Wong PRIVATE Scotch College, Adelaide Yr 12 fees: $23,080 Spokesperson for defence Stephen Conroy PRIVATE Daramalan College, Canberra Yr 12 fees: $7420
Shadow treasurer? Chris Bowen PUBLIC St Johns Park High School, Sydney
Manager of opposition business, spokesman for finance Tony Burke PRIVATE St Patrick’s College, Strathfield Yr 12 fees: $7143
Shadow attorney-general?, spokesman for the arts ?Mark Dreyfus PRIVATE Scotch College, Melbourne Yr 12 fees: $26,556
Spokesman for science, higher education and industry Kim Carr PUBLIC Moreland High School, Coburg
Spokesman for infrastructure, tourism Anthony Albanese PRIVATE St Mary’s Cathedral College, Sydney Yr 12 fees: $1959
Spokesman for environment, climate change Mark Butler PUBLIC Unley High School, South Australia
Spokesman for communications Jason Clare PUBLIC Canley Vale High School, Sydney
Spokeswoman for education, early childhood Kate Ellis MP PUBLIC Daws Road, Adelaide
Spokesman for agriculture? Joel Fitzgibbon PRIVATE All Saints College, Maitland
Spokesman for resources, Northern Australia Gary Gray PUBLIC Whyalla High School
Spokeswoman for health Catherine King PRIVATE Emmaus College Burwood Yr 12 fees: $5970
Spokeswoman for families, disability reform Jenny Macklin PUBLIC Wangaratta High School
Spokesman for immigration Richard Marles PRIVATE Geelong Grammar School Yr 12 fees: $32,400
Spokesman for ageing Shayne Neumann PUBLIC Bundamba State Secondary College, Ipswich
Spokesman for employment Brendan O’Connor PRIVATE Aquinas College, Ringwood Yr 12 fees: $5075
