Sydney Atheists opposes the 2014 budget's support for the indoctrination of children

Sydney Atheists oppose the 2014 budget on the grounds that it maintains indoctrination at the expense of education.

The Prime Minister and Treasurer have cut back on education funding and uncapped university fees. At the same time they have set aside $245 million to maintain the chaplaincy program. Education Minister Christopher Pyne told Guardian Australia “Counsellors and social workers in schools are really the responsibility of the states and territories,” leaving Sydney Atheists to question what the public benefit is.

Ron Williams would like to know, when the Commonwealth has cut state education and health funding by $80 billion over the next decade, and reneging on the promised money to school children with disabilities. Over $670 million of taxpayers' money has been spent or committed to this political stunt, that now will not have a counselling component.

With Roy Morgan research finding that the number of Australians with no religion has risen to 36.7%, the allocation of public funds to explicitly religious programs has a diminishing benefit, while parents of children with disabilities will continue to struggle.

Sydney Atheists calls on the Commonwealth to allocate the chaplaincy funding to states and let them decide how best to equip our schools with counselling, pastoral care and social worker needs.