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‘Australia’s founders wouldn’t have wanted this’: a case for secular education
Professor Marion Maddox is disappointed with the government. She is worried their injection of extra funds into independent and Catholic schools will further damage "one of the most religiously and economically segregated systems in the western world".
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In contemporary society, the divisiveness is primarily politically between left and right rather than secular and religious. People who choose to pay for private schools often want their kids to learn different values than those promoted in public schools. Taking away subsidising of private schools will push fees out of affordability for many of these parents.
Another point to remember is that education is never free but is subsidised by the tax payer. People who send their kids to private school also contribute taxes which subsidize this education. It is fair that they benefit from some of the subsidizing they have contributed to rather than all this money going into public schools.