As members well know, I am a proud product of our amazing public education system, as is my wife, whom I met in high school—which also happens to be the same school that both of my children are educated at. Staying on the topic of my children, I wish my son Evan a happy sixteenth birthday today. I hope to get home soon to cut that birthday cake with him. Like so many families in south-western Sydney, we work extremely hard and make significant sacrifices to ensure that our kids live a better life and do better than us. Education is one of the key planks to ensure that. Though I have the privilege of being a member of Parliament, I make significant sacrifices to make sure that my kids have a better life than I had.
As I said, as soon as this speech is finished, I will go home to Evan to cut the wonderful chocolate cake that he has been excited about. Of course, that is not the topic of my speech; my speech is about the importance of education and the way that it gives the people of this State, no matter where they come from or what their background or circumstances are, the ability to rise up and do what they want. In my case, that was to come into this Chamber that is full of history and become the first member for Leppington. On the topic of Leppington, I speak about some of the amazing things that this Government is doing to turn around 12 years of neglect that we saw in public education as the south-west grew rapidly. I have spoken about this topic many times before, but it bears repeating.
Throughout the entire area of Austral, Leppington and Denham Court—where we saw thousands upon thousands of houses built—not a single public high school was delivered by the previous Government. I was excited to turn the sod at the new Leppington high school a couple of weeks ago. It will open day one, term 1 in 2027 with capacity for 1,000 students and be co‑located next to Leppington Public School, which celebrated 100 years a couple of years ago. The new school means that parents in my electorate will be able to drop off their kids at the public primary school and public high school. They can then go 500 metres up the road to the existing train station to get to work. The Government is providing a great deal of amenity when it comes to the town centre around Leppington.
But it does not stop at Leppington high school. The Government has announced the public school and preschool in Emerald Hills, which will open in 2028 with capacity for 550 students and 60 preschool places. The public school will include a library, hall and all the sports facilities that a modern school deserves. The Government is also upgrading a bunch of schools across the electorate. Austral Public School is getting $90 million in total, as is Leppington Public School. There are upgrades to Dalmeny Public School and Greenway Park Public School. I congratulate and thank all of the principals at each of those schools. Austral Public School has seen its population almost triple over the past three years as the area has grown. We have needed to invest quickly to ensure that students moving to Austral get the education they deserve.
It is not just about infrastructure. The previous Government had an obsession with building things, but there is no point in doing that if they are not staffed. I am proud to announce that teacher vacancies in Leppington have been cut by more than half—they are down 61 per cent. We are ensuring that teachers are where they should be: in classrooms teaching students. I have heard stories from my own children. When my daughter was doing her HSC, students were left to their own devices time and time again. A teacher would come in, give them the lesson plan and just trust that they would be able to look after themselves. I am proud to be part of a government that is turning that around to ensure we have teachers where they need to be, which is in classrooms. On top of that will be new preschools at Eschol Park, Kearns and Robert Townson Public School. We are turning Eagle Vale High School into a selective sports high school so that we can have future Olympians and Paralympians like my good friend the Deputy Government Whip. These projects are long overdue, but it is what Labor does. We invest, build and deliver when it comes to education.
Ms LIESL TESCH (Gosford) (19:57): I wish Evan, the son of the member for Leppington, a very happy sixteenth birthday. As a former public school teacher and a graduate of public education, I thank the member for Leppington for all the amazing work he is doing in his community to ensure the growth of education and the expansion of opportunity for young people in our communities to participate and receive the best possible outcomes.
TEMPORARY SPEAKER (Mr Michael Kemp): Before I call the member for Willoughby, I recognise the Deputy Mayor of Willoughby, Angelo Rozos, and guests, who are in the public gallery.
