MS TIERNEY (Minister for Training and Skills) — I rise to update the house on the Andrews Labor government’s strong commitment to Victoria’s training and TAFE system through National Skills Week. National Skills Week, which starts on 28 August, is an opportunity for our TAFEs and other training providers to showcase the fantastic training and skill development underway in Victoria, which is critical to driving this state’s productivity and growth. It is a week when we can see the efforts of everyday Victorians gaining skills and qualifications to go on to run successful businesses, work internationally and have a range of fulfilling careers displayed. This year’s theme, ‘More than you know’, is about promoting the success stories of those in vocational sectors to uphold these alumni as positive outcomes of the vocational education and training (VET) pathways.
Since coming to office Labor has committed to providing millions of dollars of purpose-built, targeted investment into the TAFE sector to benefit individual students, industry and the economy. This significant investment is rebuilding and growing our public TAFE institutes to better position them to provide high-quality training that people need to access great careers. We have cleaned up the private provider system following our quality blitz, and we are implementing Skills First to deliver high-quality training that leads to real jobs.
During National Skills Week we will be showcasing to young students and the wider public that you can have a successful and lengthy career by following your passion through a VET pathway. This includes such events as Girls Big Day Out at The Gordon, where year 9 girls from surrounding Geelong secondary schools spend the day gaining hands-on experience in a range of trade activities, from construction to automotive trades, giving these young women a taste of the many opportunities that are available to them. I encourage everyone looking to train or re-skill to search out what is on offer and take a look at the National Skills Week website.