I spoke in favour of a motion brought by colleague Jihad Dib MP, Member for Lakemba.


Mr Jihad Dib(Lakemba) (11:25:09):I move that this House:


Notes TAFE has provided a firstclass education to hundreds of thousands of students, apprentices and trainees for over 130years.
Commits to ensuring TAFE is properly resourced and remains a public education institution.
Recognises the future development of employment and advanced skills development must be addressed through TAFE.
Calls on the Government to expand subsidised courses and incentives for students, trainees and apprentices to enable greater access to TAFE, skills development and employment.



Ms JODIE HARRISON(Charlestown) (12:07:39):By leave: I thank the House for allowing me to participate in this debate. I am in favour of the motion and congratulate the member for Lakemba on initiating the debate. TAFE must play an important role in the future economic development of our State, especially as we recover from COVID-19 and the current recession. I join the member for Lakemba in calling for the expansion of subsidised TAFE courses. We must encourage people to develop their skills and enable them to do so.

The reality is that, thanks to this Government's mishandling of the skills sector, we are staring down the barrel of a skills crisis in many areas, including in early childhood education and care. We know that early childhood education is an important factor in later academic success. We also know that a lack of access to quality and affordable early childhood education and care is one of the key barriers in limiting the economic participation of women. We also know that we are facing a major shortage of available early childhood educators. In a submission to the Productivity Commission the Australian Childcare Alliance stated:

the early learning sector is facing arecruitment crisis: there is a critical shortage of qualified, competent candidates for the positions of early childhood educators and Early Childhood Teachers, and services are struggling to fill these roles.

According to the Commonwealth Department of Employment's labour market research report released in April last year, the number of children using long day care services in New South Wales in June 2018 was 232,760, which is an increase of 15 per cent over the previous five years. The number of nought to four-year-olds in New South Wales is projected to grow by 7 per cent from 2,016 to 2,021. Clearly the demand for early childhood education and care will increase in the short-to-medium term.

The report notes that regional employers recruiting for early childhood teachers and educators have struggled to fill vacancies. The Australian Childcare Alliance identified the vocational training framework that services the sector as "failing in its role to deliver an adequate pool of highly skilled graduates". This must be addressed. The Victorian Government added two more early childhood qualifications to the free TAFE course list this year and has made the diploma of early childhood education and care tuition free for eligible students. This encourages people looking to start their career, re-skill or skill-up to consider pursuing a career in the early childhood sector. It is supported by scholarships for bachelor degrees, postgraduate qualifications and Aboriginal pathways relating to the early childhood sector. I reiterate the member for Lakemba's call for the Government to expand subsidised courses and incentives that enable greater access to TAFE, skills development and employment. The Government should follow the Victorian example by including early childhood education in any expansion. It is the right thing to do for the State, for the early childhood education sector, for the economy and for families.