Lynne Kosky

"Victoria’s Education Act was first enacted in 1873. While it was reviewed in 1958, there has never been a fundamental revision of the Act that provides the regulation of all schooling in Victoria,"

"This is an historic opportunity for a public consultation process on education and training legislation. What was relevant 130 years ago, or even 50 years ago, is not always going to be relevant today. For example, our laws do not reflect currents trends, such as the raising of the minimum school-leaving age, which is higher than 15 in most other OECD countries.

"We need to ensure our education legislation meets the needs and expectations of a community in the 21st century. Today the system has broader subject choice, greater autonomy for schools and teachers, increased focus on skills and employment outcomes and different demands on teachers and trainers."

The review would also examine the seven statutory authorities in the portfolio, to identify any areas of overlap or duplication."

Informed by the views expressed and our own policy research, this Bill represents the aspirations and expectations of the community for an education and training system set in the 21st century in the following ways:

Lynne Janice Kosky (2 September 1958 – 4 December 2014) was an Australian politician and senior minister in the Government of Victoria.

"...many of the provisions in the current 1958 Education Act remained unchanged from 1872. As a consequence the most significant changes included in this reform Bill relate to school education where current legislation prescribes in minute and often archaic detail the operation of a government school over a century ago. In developing this reform Bill we have consulted widely with education and training stakeholders and the broader community over the past year.

Born in Melbourne with a twin brother Mark, Kosky was educated at Footscray High School, and graduated from the University of Melbourne in 1980 with a Bachelor of Social Work.

In her final year of studies, she had a placement at Sunshine High School, where she met her future husband, teacher Jim Williamson.

After a few months of unemployment, Kosky secured a job as a social worker at the Victorian Department of Education, but finding she was not suited to counselling, became a community education officer.

Contact with Joan Kirner, a female parliamentarian, inspired Kosky to join the Labor Party in 1985, and work as a government policy advisor and a year later she was elected to the City of Footscray council, becoming Mayor in 1988.

She was also a member of the Board of the Footscray Football Club (now known as the Western Bulldogs), where she became Number 1 Woman Ticketholder.

In 1993, while pregnant with her first child Hana, Kosky ran for the preselection for the State Parliamentary seat of Altona, a safe Labor seat in Melbourne's western suburbs.

She represented the electoral district of Altona in the Victorian Legislative Assembly for the Labor Party from 1996 to 2010 and held key ministerial posts from 1999 through to her retirement from politics, including the key education and public transport portfolios.

A sometimes controversial figure, particularly as public transport minister, and a magnet for criticism about the performance of Melbourne's metropolitan rail system, Kosky presided over the largest increases to public transport patronage in 50 years in Victoria when a substantial infrastructure deficit had been created over that period due to a bias towards funding for roads.

Kosky attracted record funding for public transport, particularly during the settling of the Victorian Transport Plan, and built a strong record of legislative reform in her ministerial posts.

She was defeated by Carole Marple, but was preselected and elected in 1996.

With the ALP in opposition during her early years as an MP, Kosky believed she would get the prized education portfolio in a February 1999 shadow cabinet reshuffle, but ALP leader John Brumby awarded it to Mary Delahunty instead, with Kosky assigned to the junior education role of employment, tertiary education and training.

When the ALP, now led by Steve Bracks, defeated Jeff Kennett's Liberal government in the 1999 state election, Kosky was awarded the equivalent ministry as Employment]].

She also took on the Finance portfolio in 2000, and was a member of the Cabinet Expenditure Review Committee responsible for budget oversight.

Lynne Kosky was appointed Minister for Education and Training in February 2002, and shortly afterward implemented what she considers one of her greatest achievements: the introduction of the Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL), a "hands-on" alternative to the Victorian Certificate of Education.

Kosky led an extensive legislative review during her period as Minister for Education and Training and released a discussion paper on 11 February 2005 on a review of 15 separate statutes governing Victoria's education and training system.

She commented that:

Kosky outlined her general approach to education in a speech in February 2006:

"Of all the factors that have the potential to increase an individual's opportunities, education and training is the most enabling. It allows individuals to equip themselves to live fulfilling, productive and satisfying lives. It provides the opportunity for them to consider their place in our democratic Australian communities and to acknowledge their cultural and linguistic heritage. Not only does education provide the grounding for the development of skills and judgment, it supports people to be innovative and creative. Education and training enables individuals to contribute to Australian society by adding to our national prosperity, participating in our democratic processes and strengthening the cohesive and egalitarian nature of our communities. It is a private good that has immense public value.

The successful provision of quality education and training for all is the critical requirement of all modern democracies to enable their citizens to flourish personally and to maximise economic, social and cultural opportunity.

A quality education and training system does not respond only to contemporary needs and issues; it should also identify and anticipate future needs and challenges.

It is a fundamental community and social glue, while being a bridge to a more prosperous and harmonious future."

Kosky's review of education legislation led to the introduction of the Education and Training Reform Bill in February 2006, the most far reaching statutory changes in the field for a century.

She made the following observations in her speech to Parliament:

Following the return of the Bracks government in the 2006 election, it was rumoured among the Victorian ALP factions that Kosky would be promoted to Deputy Premier.

Steve Bracks denied the rumour, saying his deputy would continue to be John Thwaites.

Instead, Kosky was appointed Minister for Public Transport and the Arts.

Lynne Kosky came under fire in April 2007 when an email was leaked to the media in which she asked her parliamentary colleagues not to forward on complaints from their constituents about Melbourne's public transport system.

She defended the correspondence on ABC Radio, denying she was shirking responsibility as the public transport minister, and that the directive had been intended to hasten communication and reduce response times for transport complaints.

In December 2007, she defended the delayed implementation of the myki smartcard ticketing system for Melbourne's public transport, stating it was a complicated system and it was "important to get it right".

In 2008, Kosky played a key role in the development of the Victorian Transport Plan and secured the most extensive funding for transport in Victoria for many years.

The Plan involved more than $38 billion in projects including:

In December 2008, Kosky introduced the Bus Safety Bill to increase the safety of Victoria's bus industry.

On 18 January 2010, Lynne Kosky announced her intention to resign from Parliament immediately, citing "significant health problems in her family".