Labour To Blame For Wananga's Financial Mess

Ken Shirley
Monday, 9 May 2005
Press Releases - Education

ACT MP Ken Shirley today blamed the Labour Government for Te Wananga O Aotearoa being on the brink of insolvency.

Mr Shirley was responding to the Government’s $20 million bailout of the wananga and the likelihood of a commissioner being appointed to run it.

“The reason the wananga is spiralling out of control is because of the way Labour shovelled taxpayers’ money at it with no accountability and without ensuring proper governance was in place,” Mr Shirley said. “Government agencies have made it quite clear that their instructions from ministers was to dish out the cash without to much scrutiny.

“It’s a disgrace that the Auditor-General’s terms of reference for his inquiry into the wananga does not include an investigation into its dubious enrolment practices.

“It was inevitable that Labour’s appalling failure to cap the wananga’s expansion would cause it to hit the financial skids.

“The bailout and the impending appointment of a commissioner highlight just how bad things have got at the wananga.

“The amazing thing is that Labour would have allowed the problems at the wananga to continue had ACT not exposed the rort earlier this year,” Mr Shirley said.

ENDS

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