[Greens-Media] TAFE cuts and market slash student opportunities

[John Kaye]

TAFE cuts and market slash student opportunities

Media release: 9 February 2013

Skills opportunities for students with disability and apprentice training
are two of the early victims of the O'Farrell government's TAFE budget cuts
and the 'Smart and Skilled' market for training, according to Greens NSW MP
John Kaye.

Courses at North Sydney Institute of TAFE for students with disability were
free in 2012. By the end of 2013 fees had risen to an unaffordable $825,
shutting many out of opportunities to work in food handling.

('TAFE cuts hurting students', Sun Herald, 9 February, page 23,
http://j.mp/smh13029)

Dr Kaye said: "As North Sydney Institute prepares to lose a large portion
of its core budget to competition with private providers, management is
trimming costs by disgracefully abandoning people with intellectual
disabilities.

"Yet another program has been made unaffordable for a disadvantaged sector
of the community.

"This is the direct result of the O'Farrell government's budget cuts and
TAFE institutes preparing for the financial devastation that next year's
competitive market will bring.

"Affordable skills training for people with intellectual disability is
joining fine arts, second chance education and outreach in the growing list
of victims of the Coalition's plans to dump TAFE into competition with low
cost, low quality private providers.

"This is the beginning of the end for TAFE unless 'Smart and Skilled' is
stopped before it rips core funding out of the public provider.

"Skills training will be privatised and disadvantaged groups will be shut
out of employment opportunities.

"The blame should go right to the O'Farrell government that is about to
strip TAFE institutes of the lion's share of their core funding and force
them to compete for students and the dollars they will bring.

"Access courses for students with intellectual disability are just one of
many programs that will be deemed too expensive to subsidise in the new
environment.

"Low income people with intellectual disability are the early victims of
competition ideology.

"People with intellectual disability are being shut out of affordable
training by a state government that is fixated on cutting public spending
and dumping TAFE into unwinnable competition with private providers," Dr
Kaye said.

For more information:  John Kaye 0407 195 455



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John Kaye
Greens NSW MP
phone: 0407 195 455
web: www.john.nsw.greens.org.au
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