Maharey Reveals Where the Bribe Money Came From

Wednesday, August 15 2001
Dr Muriel Newman
Press Releases -- Tertiary Education

Steve Maharey's $35 million bribe to universities is at the expense of private education providers, ACT Tertiary Education Spokesman Dr Muriel Newman said.

"In response to my written Parliamentary question [number 10848] the Minister has today conceded all the money for his new so-called Tertiary Education Strategic Change Fund was made available by his recently announced funding moratorium for private training establishments.

"The Minister dug a big hole for himself with his 'no fee increase' demand to tertiary institutions. His way of clambering out has been to clobber the private educators with the moratorium and then pay off the public educators with this new phoney fund.

"The big losers in all this are the private education providers and 30,000 private students who stand to be punished for no other reason that they exercised their right to choose where they obtained their education.

"This is the worst kind of Government meddling and shows that the Government's new Tertiary Education Commission may well be little more than a front for Ministerial dictatorship.

"Private training providers have done much to improve the diversity, convenience and choice of tertiary education. In a competitive environment students are the main beneficiaries.

"Mr Maharey is clearly signalling that this Government is ideologically opposed to the private provision of tertiary education, yet the trend in most OECD countries is towards choice and diversity in education, with the focus on excellence being a driving force. This Government is clearly heading in exactly the opposite direction.

ACT will continue to fight this and seek restoration of a balanced system which encourages diversity and choice," Dr Newman said.

For more information visit ACT online at http://www.act.org.nz or contact the ACT Parliamentary Office at act@parliament.govt.nz.

© Scoop Media