Inmates before graduates & prisons before polytech
new-zealand-labour-party
Thu May 14 2009 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Inmates before graduates & prisons before polytech
Thursday, 14 May 2009, 10:22 am
Press Release: New Zealand Labour Party
14 May 2009
Media Statement
Inmates before graduates and prisons before polytechs
The Government’s plan to cut tertiary education spending in order to pay for prisons and the probation service is heading in completely the wrong direction, says Labour Tertiary Education Spokesperson Maryan Street.
Finance Minister Bill English told Parliament yesterday ‘we have to decide whether pre-commitments to adjustments in tertiary institutional funding 3 or 4 years away are more important than the growing demand on the probation service and corrections service.’
He later confirmed there would be cuts to tertiary spending in this year’s Budget.
“The Government should instead follow Australia’s example of a huge investment in teaching, research and innovation in this week’s Budget. The Australian Government realises investment in education is an essential response to the recession,” Maryan Street said.
“The National Government is doing precisely the opposite by cutting tertiary education funding. National’s rhetoric around job protection and skills development once again rings hollow in light of the Finance Minister’s statements.
“It is clear that this Government prefers to invest in the services required for society’s offenders rather than in the education required to keep people in work and out of penal institutions,” Maryan Street said.
“New Zealand’s recovery from the recession relies heavily on the skills of our present and future workforce. Our universities, polytechnics and wänanga are standing ready to assist New Zealand to emerge quickly and smoothly out of the recession by enrolling additional students in degree courses and skills training programmes,” said Maryan Street.
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“Universities and polytechnics are all experiencing extra enrolments because of redundancies as workers try to improve their skills. This is the time for extra investment in tertiary institutions, not a time for cuts and insecurity.
“Universities are already warning that increased unfunded enrolments will result in capping the number of students in courses or compromising the quality of teaching. We don’t need either of these, especially in a recession,” she said.
ENDS
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