I recently signed the "Invest in TAFE for a Better State" 5 point plan alongside Fiona Byrne, Greens candidate for Marrickville, in support of TAFE students and teachers. 
The Invest in TAFE 5 point plan includes:
- Invest in services - Government must guarantee TAFE funding for quality education for our students.
- Look after public assets - Ensure that TAFE jobs and courses are not contracted out to the private sector.
- Plan long-term - Invest in infrastructure for TAFE that ensures a skilled workforce.
- Back our workers - Increase permanent teaching positions and invest in teacher training.
- Govern for the common good - Ensure that everyone in NSW has affordable access to a TAFE education.
I told the media: "The Greens are calling for long term investment in TAFE and fully support the NSW Teachers Federation's 5 point Plan for a Better State. It is essential that TAFE is affordable and properly funded".
"Across Balmain and Marrickville there our three TAFE campuses training and empowering the members of the community with the skills they need to enter or re-enter the workforce. Without a long term funded TAFE system, skills shortages are only going to worsen in our area and across NSW."
Fiona Byrne said "Labor and the Coalition have severely underfunded TAFE at a state and national level for over a decade. Since 2003 there has been a 15.7 per cent decline in real funding. This fails to address skills shortages and puts undue pressure on teachers, who are continually expected to deliver quality courses with fewer and fewer resources.
"TAFE plays a key role in training people with the skills they need to enter the workforce, either for the first time or after a period of absence, like maternity leave. The Greens are 100 per cent behind the TAFE teachers and students in our community."
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