COUNTRY Labor Candidate for Calare, Jess Jennings, has launched his federal election campaign in Orange with an attack on the Turnbull government’s vocational education policies.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
“In areas where there are so many job losses at places like Electrolux, Simplot and Cadia, some of those caused by NLP incompetence and poor timing, we need a buoyant training provider such as TAFE to give people the prospects of employment,” he said.
Opposition spokeswoman for vocational education, Sharon Bird, who was visiting Orange TAFE with Mr Jennings, said data released by the National Centre of Vocational Education Research (NCVER), showed the number of apprentices in training in Calare has fallen from 3182 in June 2014 to 2363 in March 2015 - a drop of 25 per cent in less than 10 months.
“In the two years from September 2013, Australia lost 122,400 apprentices in training due to these cuts,” she said.
“Eight hundred and nineteen of those positions were lost from the Calare electorate.”
Ms Bird said unlike the city where access to public transport and private providers were abundant, the situation was different in Orange.
“Regional and rural areas need TAFE,” she said.
“Not only are they needed for training apprentices, but they are the only reputable pathway to university available to many people.”
Dodgy private training providers were targeted by Bill Shorten during his budget reply speech and Mr Jennings said because it was a challenge for them to make money in regional areas more regional people were missing out.
“The private training groups that we have out here are actually quite good, but they’re quite a distance apart. No one wants to travel 50 or 100 kilometres to do their training.”
Mr Jennings said the Labor Party’s position was clear on TAFE funding and called on Malcolm Turnbull and Barnaby Joyce to come clean about their plans for a federal takeover of the vocational education system.
“The NSW Liberals and Nationals have an appalling track record in the vocational education sector so far - they cannot be trusted with our TAFEs. And Mr Turnbull and Mr Joyce are liable to wreck it even further,” he said.
The NSW Minister for Skills, John Barilaro said apprentice numbers were now increasing.
“iVET (The NSW Apprenticeship management system) data shows apprenticeship and traineeship approvals are increasing again, following declines reported by NCVER,” he said.
TAFE Western Institute were contacted but did not comment as it was a national matter.
Apprenticeship approvals are up by 7.3 per cent for the period January to April 2016 compared to the same period in 2015.”
TAFE Western Institute were contacted but didn’t comment as it was a national matter.
