PLANS by the NSW Government to sell off the Deniliquin TAFE campus have been labelled “idiotic” and “disgraceful” by Member for Murray Helen Dalton.
“A secret briefing note tabled in NSW Parliament Budget Estimates on 28 October revealed TAFE NSW is seeking approval to sell off 19 TAFE campuses across regional NSW, including in Deniliquin,” Mrs Dalton said.
“Basically, the NSW Government want to flog off the TAFE buildings and turn regional TAFE centres into online learning hubs, with remote access learning.
“This is a completely idiotic idea.
“You can’t learn practical skills from a computer screen, with your teacher in Albury.
“Students need face-to-face learning and practical experience.”
Mrs Dalton said it was likely the Deniliquin campus would also lose access to hands-on trade and automotive courses, with Deniliquin TAFE already closing their carpentry and plumbing courses.
“More young people will be forced to leave town to continue their education,” Mrs Dalton said.
“This latest decision is absolutely disgraceful and another body blow to these beautiful towns.
“The NSW Government must rule out this proposal immediately.
“We need to keep Deniliquin TAFE buildings in public hands, and we should be investing more in TAFE, not less.
“I sometimes wonder if this Government want to kill off all of regional NSW and force us all to move to Sydney.”
Mrs Dalton said she would fight the decision when NSW Parliament resumes this month, and urged the community to contact Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education Geoff Lee and Narrandera’s National Party representative Steph Cooke to oppose the decision.
“They need to stop the destruction of regional NSW,” Mrs Dalton said.
