$1.5 billion blow out and changes to guidelines

"For the first time the revised Building the Education Revolution guidelines include the words 'value for money',"" Christopher Pyne, Shadow Education Minister said today.

"The guidelines now also demand that Canberra must approve all building plans prior to construction," Mr Pyne said.

"Despite these changes to the guidelines, Ms Gillard's office insists that this new approval process was occurring prior to the guideline changes. If so, then Ms Gillard is personally responsible for the cost blow outs, the state skimming, the profiteering and the calamity of complaints from school principals, governing councils and others," he said.

"The revised guidelines also relax the starting dates for BER projects, which the Opposition has been calling for since the Auditor-General announced he would be conducting a full investigation into the charges of waste and mismanagement in the BER.

"All of these changes, recommended by the Coordinator General, are evidence that there has been widespread systemic problems with the Building the Education Revolution. Now we have a dollar figure of how much all this waste and mismanagement has cost the Australian taxpayer: $1.5 billion.

"Ms Gillard's claim that the $1.5 billion is a top up because the Government only ever planned on delivering to 90 per cent of primary schools is just embarrassing spin.

"In February Ms Gillard promised a new building for every Primary school, not 90 per cent. This is a Minister who will say and do anything to save her bacon.

"If anyone needed any further evidence that the Minister for Education, the Minister for Employment and Workplace relations, the Minister for Social Inclusion and the Deputy Prime Minister has too much on her plate to focus on the details, then this is it.

"We can add it to a growing list. The Computers in Schools program blew-out by $1.4 billion, Trades Training Centres in every school turned into one in every ten schools and this week's humiliating youth allowance back flip all point to a Minister out of her depth.

"Australia deserves better than a part-time Education Minister," Mr Pyne said.

August 28, 2009

Media contact:

Adam Howard

0400 414 833