TEC must commit to investigate scams

new-zealand-national-party

Mon Apr 23 2007 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)

TEC must commit to investigate scams

Monday, 23 April 2007, 1:45 pm
Press Release: New Zealand National Party

Pansy Wong MP
National Party Associate Education Spokeswoman

23 April 2007

National Party Associate Education spokeswoman Pansy Wong says the Tertiary Education Commission must honour its commitment to reinitiate inquiries into alleged scams being run by private education providers.

"I have provided the Tertiary Education Commission with documents that appear to throw doubt on the paperwork provided by one tertiary education provider to an official TEC inquiry last year."

Mrs Wong says the TEC and the Government relied on that information to say funding rorts in the sector were not widespread.

"Yet the statements of two students that I have provided to the TEC, allege they received incentives after declarations were signed saying no such payments were being made, or had been made.

"If the students' allegations are correct, this may constitute a bid to mislead an official Government inquiry. That is something that TEC will want to chase up I am sure."

Mrs Wong says when the allegations first surfaced last week, TEC chief executive Janice Shiner said 'we will follow that up'.

"I plan to hold them to their word on that. They said they wanted to talk to students and I am happy to help make that happen if I can."

Mrs Wong wrote to the Commission on Friday asking them to re-open their probe into 13 institutions last year. (Letter attached)

"If institutions did not reveal the whole story in those declarations, what faith can we have in the rest of the TEC inquiry?

"Do we really know how much taxpayer money was caught up in this?"

ENDS

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