Northern Territory on the Information Dirt Track

The Territory Opposition is demanding the Chief Minister take up the fight to have the information superhighway extended to Territory school children living in regional communities.

“At the last Federal election the Prime Minister Kevin Rudd promised Australians an education revolution,” says Terry Mills, Leader of the Opposition.

“Kevin Rudd didn’t promise an education revolution to all of Australians, except parts of northern Australia.

Kevin Rudd stated that “Every secondary student in Australia will graduate into a digital world and a digital economy: that means every secondary school in the country needs to be a digital school.

“Territorians need the Chief Minister to hold Kevin Rudd to his word of an Australian education revolution when COAG meets tomorrow.

“Given the Federal and Territory Government’s rhetoric about closing the gap it would be a cruel irony if remote Territorians were to be denied access to 21st century technology.

“Under Labor’s National Secondary School Computer Fund hundreds of thousands of students who already have a personal computer and access to the information superhighway in their own bedroom will be funded to have their own school computer as well.

“Yet some of our most disadvantaged school children will be largely left out of the education revolution.

“The Federal Government has responsibility for telecommunications under the Australian Constitution.

“It now has a moral obligation to connect as many Australian school kids to the information superhighway as possible.

“The Chief Minister needs to impress upon Kevin Rudd that the Territory will not be treated like a poor cousin in this matter.”

2008-07-02