28 February 2011
DAN TEHAN TRANSCRIPT – INTERVIEW WITH STEVE MARTIN
ABC BALLARAT
Subjects: Waubra Primary School BER bungling.
E&OE……………………….…………………………………………………………………
STEVE MARTIN:
National Government’s Education Revolution and the Stimulus Package that saw lots of schools get new buidings. The students though in Waubra aren’t benefiting from the new buildings, not benefiting at all because they’re still locked up. Karen Molloy’s son is a student at the school and she’s with us.
Karen, good morning to you.
KAREN MOLLOY:
Good morning Steve.
STEVE MARTIN:
Just talk through the situation at Waubra Primary School for us – what’s happening?
KAREN MOLLOY:
Ok – so we’ve been really really happy granted all this money and in line to get a great new building and so nearly two years ago we started the excitement and the construction phase of pulling all the buildings apart. We’ve now got the new bulding – it’s behind a massive big fence – the fence goes right out onto the cricket pitch, it’s impeding onto the football oval and our kids can’t even play, they can’t run, they can’t kick footy’s, they can’t play cricket and we’ve just had enough basically.
STEVE MARTIN:
Ok, so they old buildings were demolished for the new building?
KAREN MOLLOY:
The old buildings were pulled apart while we sat and waited.
STEVE MARTIN:
Ok – the demountables were put on the grounds?
KAREN MOLLOY:
Once we were told that the new building was coming they were then moved in front of the goal posts and just plonked there – and then the new building arrived and a big fence went up so the kids can’t do – pretty much go out onto the football oval to get into their classrooms and so that means the kids just aren’t getting the activity they need to run around so they can really have a great education.
STEVE MARTIN:
How many kids at the school?
KAREN MOLLOY:
There’s 45 students.
STEVE MARTIN:
And with all that space around Waubra, at the school they really haven’t got enough space to run around.
KAREN MOLLOY:
No – and it’s a great little playground – it’s just got fences around it and it’s just a construction site basically and the kids are trying to manoeuvre around fences – my little boy who’s mad about football and cricket hasn’t been able to play that all year and it’s just not fair.
STEVE MARTIN:
So, Karen, what have you been told about when, because my understanding is the building’s built but it’s not fitted out – what have you been told about when it’s going to be finished and fitted out.
KAREN MOLLOY:
Well we’ve only had instructions from the Principal and the Principal’s been great – he’s been saying you know – “this is coming, this is coming” but every week there’s builders there, there’s nothing and we just wait – we go in – I ask my little boy “was there builders there today?” – he comes home – he says “no Mum”.
STEVE MARTIN:
It just sits there?
KAREN MOLLOY:
It just sits there.
STEVE MARTIN:
And the tradies don’t turn up?
KAREN MOLLOY:
No – well they might come you know one morning and then they’re gone for the next week.
STEVE MARTIN:
Ok, do you understand there’s lots of other stuff going on in the State at the moment Karen, with all the flooding and stuff with that? Is that an excuse – those tradies may have been called away to work for more immediate things – or…
KAREN MOLLOY:
Oh – that’s fine – but the money was allocated in 2009. The Gillard Government announced this and there’s just been no follow through.
STEVE MARTIN:
So you don’t have any idea either from the Principal how much longer it’s going to take?
KAREN MOLLOY:
No – we’re hoping to be in next term but we were hoping to be in last year.
STEVE MARTIN:
So when were the buildings completed?
KAREN MOLLOY:
Ah – the buildings got moved here – it was built off premises and brought in on trucks and plonked on the premises at the start of this year.
STEVE MARTIN:
Yep
KAREN MOLLOY:
But the old buildings that were waiting to be removed got pulled apart – pretty much at the end of 2009.
STEVE MARTIN:
So the new building is sort of a demountabe sort of thing as well – is that right?
KAREN MOLLOY:
No – it’s a building that was just built off site and then it’s moved in. It’s a great facility; it will be amazing when it’s ready to go.
STEVE MARTIN:
Oh – so alright, did they bring it in in bits and then bolt it all together and you’ve got a permanent structure – it’s not a…
KAREN MOLLOY:
Yes – it’s a permanent structure.
STEVE MARTIN:
Ok – is there a fair bit of growing frustration, I imagine amongst parents and friends.
KAREN MOLLOY:
Yes, parents, parents friends, students and even the teachers are starting to sort of say “we’ve had enough of this”
STEVE MARTIN:
Have you been in touch with people Karen?
KAREN MOLLOY:
Well our school environment is – our kids go on the bus and quite often you don’t get to see the other parents but like it is a very big talking point. People are starting to be frustrated.
STEVE MARTIN:
What about Politicians? Have you contacted the Federal Government yourselves?
KAREN MOLLOY:
Yes, I’ve put in a phone call to our local Member who is Dan Tehan - we’re in the Wannon area, we’re right on the boundary of that electorate so sometimes we feel like we’re a bit left out. So we rang up Dan Tehan and he was very very helpful – he’s going to bring it up in question time in Parliament and hopefully get some answers.
STEVE MARTIN:
Alright – stay there for me Karen – don’t go anywhere – Dan Tehan is on the other line.
Dan Tehan, Member for Wannon – Good Morning.
DAN TEHAN:
Morning Steve – how are you?
STEVE MARTIN:
I’m right –have you brought it up in Parliament yet Dan?
DAN TEHAN:
No, I’m going to be doing that today – I was contacted last week about this. I needed to check out what was going on and look, sadly, it’s been that every day these students arrive at school they’re getting a reminder of the Gillard Government’s incompetence. This BER program has been a mitigated disaster – especially in public schools across the country and this is just sadly another example of it.
STEVE MARTIN:
They’ve got a new building though – it can’t be all bad if parents are happy with the new building it’s just the finishing of it that’s the problem.
DAN TEHAN:
Yeah, but look Steve they’ve been - the students have been in portable classrooms now for over a year – my understanding is last week the parents had to go to a meeting because the school was thinking of cutting class hours because of the lack of play space and because of the portable classroom that the students are operating in. The Gillard Government has managed to fit out all the changes in offices at the change at the election and do all that, so surely they could fit out the class rooms for these students.
STEVE MARTIN:
I know in some of the newspaper reporting about this that the Skills Minister Chris Evans – his spokesperson is saying that part of the delay is because of the flooding, part of the delay is because of the wet weather and trades people have been called all over the place and the building was very busy – do you not accept that?
DAN TEHAN:
Well, Steven, it’s been over a year and if this was a one off you would say that maybe the Government is being fair dinkum about this but it’s been over a year – we’ve got other problems in the BER program across the electorate of Wannon, and across Australia, and I just hope that they’re not using the floods as an excuse because these problems – backdate the floods and I think if this program had have been rolled out properly this school would have been at least open and up and running for this year for these students.
STEVE MARTIN:
Any other school – or how many other schools are you aware of in your electorate that have had delays where they have perhaps buildings that aren’t finished?
DAN TEHAN:
Well there’s all sorts of delays and problems which I say I have been contacted by 7 or 8 schools at least on this BER program – the issues range – I mean one of the problems is they’re not using local tradesmen, I’ve heard that a tradesman travelling 3 hours to do about half an hours landscaping at one school. There’s all sorts of issues with this program – it’s Julia Gillard’s program and it’s about time she took responsibility for it and made sure it was implemented correctly.
STEVE MARTIN:
Alright, Dan Tehan I’ll get you to stay there for me as well. Karen you’ve heard what Dan has had to say – are you going to contact other Politicians – he is certainly taking up your case?
KAREN MOLLOY:
Yeah – we’re quite happy to leave it with Dan at the moment and see – hopefully we can get a result from this.
STEVE MARTIN:
Alright – how soon in reality do you think it could be finished – I haven’t seen the building but Karen you have, when you look at it, do you know how long it might take if tradies turned up say today?
KAREN MOLLOY:
Ah, a couple of weeks.
STEVE MARTIN:
A couple of weeks it could all be sorted?
KAREN MOLLOY:
It could all be done.
STEVE MARTIN:
Alright – Karen thanks for you time.
KAREN MOLLOY:
Thank you very much.
STEVE MARTIN:
Karen Molloy, frustrated parent and also Dan Tehan, the Liberal Member for Wannon who is going to take this to Parliament for them. The Waubra school that $75,000 they received under one program and almost half a million under another for the multi purpose building which is yet to be finished.
