9. Dr ASHRAF CHOUDHARY (Labour) Link to this
to the Minister of Education
What reports has he received on efficiencies in the delivery of education?
Hon CHRIS CARTER (Minister of Education) Link to this
I have seen a report alleging that the number of staff employed in the Ministry of Education has grown at three times the rate of teacher numbers. This discredited argument has been raised in the House a number of times, including today by John Key. The truth, of course, is that the ministry merged with the Special Education Service in 2002, absorbing 1,300 staff, and with the Early Childhood Development Board in 2003, absorbing 83 staff. Since 1999 the Labour-led Government has employed 6,024 extra teachers over and above those required for roll growth, more than double the total number of staff employed by the Ministry of Education. These misleading comments from National leader, John Key, may well disguise his real agenda of slashing teacher numbers to fund his extravagant tax cut promises.
Schools’ operation funds will increase by $171 million over the next 4 years. This is the largest-ever Budget increase to school operations funding since the abolition of bulk funding. We will also fund 10 extra staff who will be working to track truants to get them back to school, 15 extra specialist staff to support blind and vision-impaired students, and 21 new staff to support children identified in our new Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Programme. Perhaps Mr Key could tell this House, as well as the parents of those children, how the sacking of these 46 new staff will help to fund his multibillion-dollar tax promises.
Anne TolleyHow efficient is this Government in delivering education services, when in 2005 it promised that every new entrant class would have only 15 students to one teacher, yet here we are, 3 years and another broken promise later, and all across the country there are new entrant classes with more than 15 students?