Don't leave town 'til you've seen the country

new-zealand-national-party

Wed Feb 14 2007 13:00:00 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)

Don't leave town 'til you've seen the country

Wednesday, 14 February 2007, 1:46 pm
Press Release: New Zealand National Party

Judith Collins MP
National Party Welfare Spokeswoman

14 February 2007

"Families Commissioner Rajen Prasad needs to get off his business class seat and come down to the coalface with me," says National Party Welfare spokeswoman Judith Collins.

She is responding to a startling admission by Dr Prasad at a select committee this morning that he has never visited the HIPPY programmes running in Auckland.

"Yet, he has spent three weeks and nearly $11,000 of taxpayer money on a visit to New York where he attended a HIPPY conference, and met with academics working in the same field.

"Any reasonable taxpayer would expect that Mr Prasad might have looked at what's going on in his own backyard before heading overseas."

The Home Interaction Programme for Parents and Youngsters (HIPPY) is a home-based programme that supports parents in becoming actively involved in their four and five year old children's learning.

"Surely, in order to improve a system or a programme, commonsense suggests you first become acquainted with what's happening on the frontline here at home. I am happy to provide Dr Prasad with that opportunity - and it won't cost the taxpayer $11,000.

"I'm not saying we shouldn't learn from overseas experience, but Dr Prasad should have visited these programmes - he is the Chief Families Commissioner after all, and HIPPY has been running here for 16 years."

Ms Collins says she plans to invite Dr Prasad to join her on a visit to a HIPPY programme running in South Auckland.

"I'm sure he'd be impressed with what they're trying to achieve. He may even learn some things about the unique New Zealand setting which the academics in New York wouldn't know about."

ENDS

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