Australian Greens spokesperson for Education, Senator Mehreen Faruqi, has said analysis released today shows once again that federal and state governments have monumentally failed to adequately fund public schools.

Data published in The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age has shown that, over the last decade, public funding has continued to flow heavily to private schools.

Senator Faruqi said:

“Well-funded public education should be the backbone of our education system, but public schools are getting a raw deal.

"Degrees should cost students zero dollars," Greens spokesperson for Education, Senator Mehreen Faruqi, said this morning in response to the "government's pathetic uni fee hikes".

“Arts graduate Minister Tehan's jobs rhetoric is empty. He's part of a Government that would rather throw a tantrum at humanities students and slam them with higher fees than do the hard work of creating jobs across the economy.

Australian Greens Housing spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has said that the federal government and National Cabinet must act urgently to ensure renters and those in housing stress are not left in enormous debt or at risk of homelessness as the eviction ban ‘cliff’ rapidly approaches.

Senator Faruqi said:

“Over the coming weeks and months, renters face the prospect of eviction and possible homelessness as eviction bans come to an end across the states and territories.

There has been a lot of public discussion in the last few weeks about racism in our society. This has largely resulted from the massive antiracist Black Lives Matter protests that have been held across the world. As I said in the Senate last week, these are long-overdue conversations taking place about the way that racism operates in our society, not just in its interpersonal, everyday, so-called 'casual' forms but also through systems, structures and institutions.

Following an unsuccessful last-minute court challenge by Animals Australia, Australian Greens Animal Welfare spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has said that the Agriculture Minister, David Littleproud MP, must urgently intervene to halt the departure of the RETWA live export ship from Australia.

Senator Faruqi will move a motion in the Senate this afternoon calling on the Minister to intervene and stop the RETWA ship from departing Australia.

Senator Faruqi said:

Unemployed people in Eden-Monaro would have meaningful work under The Greens’ plan to recover from the coronavirus economic shock in a visionary plan that would also address the climate crisis.

The Greens say this election is a chance to send a message to Canberra about tackling climate change and providing decent jobs, especially for young people.

The 5670 local jobs provided by the Invest to Recover plan would assist the post-pandemic recovery, while also providing long-term employment for the next generation.

The Greens oppose this motion. The live animal export trade is an industry built on cruelty and on so-called standards that guarantee the horrific cruelty and death of thousands of animals. At the moment there isn't even a semblance of oversight on these ships of misery, as independent observers have been taken off the ships because of COVID-19. There's not one bad apple; the whole barrel is rotten. Misery and cruelty are inherent in live animal exports, and the industry has shown time and again that it is incapable of reform.

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

   (i) the Morrison Government's HomeBuilder scheme includes grants of $25,000 for home renovations valued between $150,000 to $750,000,

   (ii) individuals can earn up to $125,000, and couples can earn up to $200,000, a year to be eligible for the grants, and

   (iii) there is a huge backlog of urgent repairs needed in Australia's social housing stock; and

I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

   (i) the government has decided to scrap free childcare and begin forcing parents to pay expensive childcare fees again from next month,

   (ii) this move will force many parents to reduce their work days or remove their children from care,

   (iii) childcare is an essential service which should be universally available for everyone, and

   (iv) the move away from free childcare will disproportionately impact women;

I can honestly say that I would not have been able to complete my masters and PhD, nor embark on a career in engineering or academia, and then eventually state and federal politics, without access to affordable child care. When I migrated to Australia from Pakistan in 1992 and commenced my studies at the University of New South Wales, I pretty quickly realised that the available child care in my area was just unaffordable. It was too expensive. And that's how I got involved in a campaign to establish affordable student-centred child care at the university.