Shadow education minister Julian Leeser unveiled the proposal on Saturday in a speech to an education conference in Sydney, saying the Coalition would remove the three cross-curriculum priorities currently embedded in Australia’s national curriculum.
The plan targets content on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures, Australia’s engagement with Asia, and sustainability. In their place, Leeser said, the curriculum would emphasise “national pride” and “Western values” – a shift he argued would better reflect the country’s heritage and prepare students with a shared civic identity.
The announcement has already drawn attention for its sweeping scope, effectively rewiring the priorities that have guided classroom learning across the country for years. While the Coalition framed the move as a return to foundational teaching, critics are likely to see it as a significant erosion of Indigenous and regional content.
Leeser’s proposal would require agreement from state and territory governments, which constitutionally control school education, before any curriculum change could take effect. The Commonwealth can influence teaching through funding agreements, but cannot unilaterally impose a national syllabus.
No timeline was provided for consultation or implementation, and the Coalition has not yet released a detailed list of what would replace the removed content. Further details are expected as the election-year debate over education policy intensifies.