Hon Erica Stanford
Minister of Education

Hon David Seymour
Associate Minister of Education

Hon Dr Shane Reti
Minister for Universities

The Government is taking further steps to deliver a world-leading education system by introducing the Education and Training Amendment Bill (No 2) to Parliament.

“We have an unrelenting focus on lifting student achievement and attendance so parents can have confidence their child has the foundations to succeed. This Bill will help achieve that by ensuring schools prioritise achievement, giving parents more time to respond to planned union strike action, and ensuring initial teacher education, teacher discipline and competence processes are fit for purpose,” Education Minister Erica Stanford says.

Proposed changes to the Act include:

• amending school board objectives, including making educational achievement the paramount objective for school boards;
• removing the Minister’s power to issue a statement of national education and learning priorities (NELP);
• requiring unions to give seven days’ notice of strike action (up from three days);
• strengthening Government’s role in Initial Teacher Education;
• strengthening the Teaching Council’s disciplinary and competence processes in the Act;
• requiring boards to have Attendance Management Plans;
• requiring each university council to have a statement on their approach to freedom of expression.

“These changes are critical to progressing our student achievement and attendance objectives, developing the workforce of the future, and establishing a knowledge rich curriculum grounded in the science of learning,” Ms Stanford says.

The Bill makes several other amendments that help maintain the health of the education system, including changes to provisions on issuing principal eligibility criteria, the requirement to charge schools an International Student Fee, and the allocation of National Student Numbers to researchers.

“Today marks another significant step towards achieving the Government’s attendance goal. By 2030 we want 80 per cent of students are present more than 90 per cent of the term,” Associate Minister David Seymour says.

“The basic premise of our flagship Stepped Attendance Response (STAR) is that no child is left behind. The Bill will support the STAR by making it mandatory for schools to have their own attendance management plan in place by Term 1 of 2026. This means every day at school is important, and interventions will follow if absences build up. This could mean consequences for the most uncooperative parents. I would like to acknowledge the work of the 67% of schools who have already in engaged in some form of STAR.

“Almost every aspect of someone's adult life will be defined by the education they receive as a child. If we want better social outcomes, we can’t keep ignoring the truancy crisis. This Government has set itself bold targets to address attendance, and it’s a bold approach that is needed for the future,” Mr Seymour says.

“Freedom of expression and academic freedom are fundamental to the role of universities as critic and conscience of society. While some universities have taken a strong approach to these issues, others are not doing enough to protect the freedom of expression rights of staff and students. This proposal strengthens the protection of freedom of expression within universities,” Universities Minister Dr Shane Reti says.

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