Schools Forced to plan for more Cake-stalls
Schools Forced to plan for more Cake-stalls and Batons Up while Government Boasts a ‘fundamentally sound’ economy
Tariana Turia and Dr Pita Sharples, Co-leaders, Maori Party
Tuesday 19 December 2006
Comments today from Principals Federation President Pat Newman, signal huge concerns for the schooling of our children say Maori Party Co-leaders Dr Pita Sharples and Tariana Turia.
“Mr Newman’s analysis that “if all schools stopped raising money from parents and community, schools would go belly up in a very short time” is alarming” said Mrs Turia.
“Surely it is every New Zealander’s basic right to enjoy opportunities to be successful through the benefit of state-funded compulsory education”.
“Instead our educational authorities (NZPF; NZ School Trustees Association; Education Review Office; New Zealand Educational Institute; Post Primary Teachers Association) have all come out today, with a consistent message about the pressures being created by inadequate school funding”.
“It is outrageous that on one hand the Government is crowing about higher than anticipated economic growth (Budget Policy Statement and the Half-Year Economic and Fiscal Update); and then on another we find schools are recording more and larger deficits than seen in the last three years” said Dr Sharples.
“This frantic release of bad news for the Government, only a few days before Christmas, shows exactly what the priorities are for Labour” said Dr Sharples.
“But as they say you can fool some of the people some of the time…..”
“We have got to see education as an investment in our future " noted Mrs Turia. "The Government must see that the education of New Zealanders is an investment in our nation. If they can't - then they should stop taking the amount of taxes from the people that they do".
"We need to put the money where it is going to yield the greatest benefit - health; education; and the well-being of our most vulnerable" concluded Mrs Turia.
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