The NSW Opposition has condemned the Minns Labor Government for slashing public school budgets by almost $150 million, despite promising its union deals would not impact classrooms.
Leader of the Opposition Mark Speakman said principals had been blindsided by the decision that will leave students across NSW worse off.
“This announcement came without warning, and now school principals are forced to look at cutting staff and programs to find savings – all because the Minns Labor Government has lost control of the Budget after trying to mislead the public into believing that their union deals wouldn’t cost anything,” Mr Speakman said.
“In practice, this will mean students could be left without crucial learning support staff, as well as having wellbeing programs slashed and school upgrades cancelled.
“The timing is also concerning. The school year is well underway, meaning key decisions have already been made and people have already been employed for specific roles. This is not good enough and our kids deserve better.”
One school principal has revealed their school will be shortchanged by at least $150,000 and will now need to look at cutting staff.
Shadow Minister for Education Sarah Mitchell said the Minns Labor Government needs to come clean to parents about how their children will be affected.
“For more than six months now, we have been calling on the Education Minister to tell us where the ‘savings’ for these union deals would come from, but now we know our students are the ones that are going to pay the price,” Ms Mitchell said.
“Prue Car went out in the media and misled parents and teachers, assuring them the money would not be taken from schools because she had found enough savings from within the bureaucracy.
“Now we could see fewer school jobs and resources, which will have direct consequences on learning – parents have every right to be furious.”
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