The Queensland Education, Training and Employment Minister John-Paul Langbroek has announced a series of measures to reduce expenditure in his portfolio.

 

They include savings of $22.8 million by cuts to Parent Awareness Strategies, advertising and research and policy programs; axing of the Skilling Queenslanders for Work program to save $19 million, with the loss of 144 full-time-equivalent jobs; and the phasing out of Queensland Comparable Assessment Tasks, performance-based assessments aligned to the Australian Curriculum,  to save $3 million this financial year.

 

Departmental staff have been advised that there will be no new appointments, essential-only travel and accommodation, no spending on furniture or office equipment, and the removal of plants. 384 temporary contracts were finalised by June 30, including departmental IT workers.