Launceston College has withdrawn invitations to politicians for its upcoming celebrations, in what the union is calling “a very strong statement” against the premier.
In a letter to state MPs dated today, Launceston College Principal Vicki Mackrill said the college community supported concerns about “the premier’s mismanagement of a complaint that has resulted in distress and harm to members of a local school community.”
“We have decided to support union action and retract invitations to politicians to attend upcoming college celebrations,” she wrote.
The Australian Education Union’s Tasmanian branch executive voted last week to ‘ban’ politicians and their representatives from visiting public schools for the rest of term four, unless Premier Jeremy Rockliff apologises over his handling of a row about Christmas at a Launceston primary school.
Trevallyn Primary School renamed its annual “Christmas on the Hill” event as “Holiday on the Hill” or “End of Year Extravaganza”, with the education department saying carols and a visit from Santa would still go ahead despite the shakeup.
Rockliff wrote to the department secretary saying he did not support schools “removing reference to Christmas in end of year celebrations or removing carols,” before posting on Facebook that he had asked the department to step in following a story published by Pulse.
AEU Tasmanian Branch Manager Brian Wightman told Pulse that the union did not ask the college to withdraw the invitations but welcomed the move.
“This is a very strong statement by Launceston College and the leadership of Launceston College to say that it’s not okay,” he said.
Wightman said he was not aware of any other schools doing the same, but the college was one of the largest in the state.
“It is significant when a school the size of Launceston College supports the industrial bans by the AEU and it sends a clear message to the premier that an apology is needed,” he said.
He said the ban applied to all politicians, including those who supported the union, so schools would not be forced to turn some away and not others.
MPs attending school events as parents are not affected.
“If politicians have a concern about the fact that they’re not attending celebrations or end of year assemblies, then they need to contact the premier,” Wightman said.
Asked whether the premier should visit a school to apologise, he said: “I’m not sure the premier would be welcome at the moment.”
Wightman said the ban was “proportionate to the harm that’s been inflicted” and did not escalate the matter.
“I think there was far more harm caused by the premier’s intervention than asking politicians not to attend,” he said.
“The problem is that the premier called for calm after he’d posted, not before,” Wightman said.
He said he had not seen the Tasmanian Principals Association respond so strongly in more than 25 years in education.
Wightman said no schools had pushed back on the ban, though some had asked “clarifying questions” and any further action would be a matter for the union’s branch executive.
Rockliff said on Monday he condemned “any behaviour that targets individuals or indeed schools” but stood by his decision to voice his concern.
“My comments were very measured,” he said.
“I expressed an opinion and I set some expectations and these matters have been well canvassed.”
The premier urged people to “be respectful” while making their “expectations as a community clear”.
“There is no excuse for attacks on any individual or school,” he said.
In a statement to Pulse, a spokesperson for the Department for Education, Children and Young People said visits were a decision for individual principals, “in line with departmental policies and procedures.”
“Student learning remains our focus,” the spokesperson said.
