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$80 million plan
Speaking in Melbourne, Mr Calwell said the Labor Party believed
governments and parties should work for the highest education standards
for all children of school age, without discrimination.
Mr Calwell said the Fede
ral Government's objective
should be the establishment
of a financial formula best
suited to achieve all-round
educational efficiency in re
lation to public money
available.
The Executive had de
cided on proposals based on
direct aid to all students.
The Victorian executive
| had put forward the scheme
and had argued that 51
(10/-) a week, which could
be paid for school f«s m
anything of a like ^ind
primary school children,
would cost S80 million (£40
million) a year. lt « <i j
Icallcd an educational en
dowment scheme.
The resolution had been
I carried unanimously.
'Wealthy
benefit'
! Mr Calwell said the de
cision represented a new ap
proach; previously the party
had put proposals to help
students with scholarships. I
i "We can still do that,
'he said, "but certain facts
that have emerged in con
nection with the working ot
the science blocks
?\nd the interest subsidy
scheme have indicated how
unfairly and unjustly these
schemes have operated in
favour of wealthy secondary
and primary schools and
their wealthy scholars and
against the children of pn
mary schools,^ both State
and non-State.
Mr Calwell said no child
in any Catholic primary
school had benefited by one
cent from the "cynical vo«
catching of Federat ed
State anti-Labor govern
ments." > 1
Alternative
scheme
Mr Allan Fraser, in his
broadcast over 2CA, Can
berra, last night said the
executive's decisions on ,
State aid would have been
incredible if they had not
been officially announced.
He said they were calcu
lated to reduce further the
prospect of a Labor Gov
ernment in this country.
The executive had given
the narrowest possible »n
ON PAGE 4:
Report oE Mr
Cahvell's speech
Text of Mr Eraser's
broadcast
Report of Dr O'Brien's
speech
terpretation of the Federal
Conference decision that no
existing benefit in State aid
should be disturbed.
The party's offer of $1
(10/-) a week to all school
children would be an alter
native, not an addition, to
State aid for church schools.
Appealing to his elector
ate to stand by him, Mr
Fraser said it would be a
matter of the utmost diffi
culty for him to go along
with the decisions of the
Executive.
' It was a fundamental
right of a parent to choose
the form of his children's
education and "as a matter
of practical politics the
State is entitled to pay a
private school the amount
which the Stale saves by
not having to educate that
child."
He went on, "So when
there is now talk of in
struction to the Parliament
ary Party I must make it
plain to you that f cannot
depart from that principle
and I will not deliberately
act against it whilst I re
main a member of this Par
liament."
$