In a bid to tackle states head-on over recent cuts and restructures to the TAFE system, Mr Rudd announced at his campaign launch on Sunday he would demand states promise to increase funding above inflation.
If they refused to do so by July 1 next year, the Commonwealth would stop funding TAFEs by giving the money to the states and instead fund the institutions directly.
And if they continued to frustrate the aim of boosting funding in real terms, the Commonwealth would set up its own vocational training system that would ''rival the great polytechnics of France and Germany''.
His policy is in response to cuts by states to the TAFE system, including about $100 million slashed in Victoria, 880 staff cut in NSW and the number of facilities in Queensland reduced from 13 to six or seven.
"We want every dollar we invest in TAFE to make a real difference - this can't happen if, for every dollar we put in, the state governments take away," Mr Rudd said in a statement.
Mr Rudd's announcement was welcomed by the Australian Education Union and the peak body TAFE Directors Australia.
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