Hayes Jo; Mallard TrevorJO HAYES (National): Thank you Mr Speaker. An exciting time to be Māori in New Zealand is it? Well tell those people that are in the Māori education sector that it's an exciting time to be in New Zealand. Tell the Māori educationalists that had their Aspire Scholarships taken away from their rangatahi so they couldn't attend high schools that the whānau couldn't afford. Tell them whether or not they feel excited about being a Māori in New Zealand today. Talk to the partnership schools the kura hourua—are they excited to be in New Zealand today as Māori? I don't think so. That's why there's a Waitangi claim that's gone forward. Pūhoro science technology engineering and mathematics (STEM) programme the academy programme—ask the students that go to the Pūhoro STEM Academy at Massey University whether they feel fortunate to be Māori in New Zealand today because I can say confidently that they do not feel happy and lucky to be a Māori in New Zealand today.This Government has turned its back on Pūhoro a STEM programme that has helped a number of Māori students get through science technology engineering and mathematics programmes within their schools. Their actual academic results were higher than the normal average results that came through NCEA last year and we expect to see more of that happening this year. So do those students feel lucky? I don't think so.Let's look at the Māori and Pacific trade training and the changes that are going on with vocational education in this country right now. Will they feel lucky? From where I stand from what I've heard they don't feel lucky at all. They've actually called the Minister to have a meeting with them so they can voice their concerns like every other educationalist about the Tomorrow's Schools vocational education NCEA reviews—all the other reviews within the education sector that are going on. People are concerned. They are concerned about the future of their rangatahi and where their rangatahi are going to end up. The vocational education review around the 16 polytechs going into one—the industry training organisations (ITOs) have been closed down. I worked in an ITO. I worked in the seafood ITO actually and there we engaged directly with the employers. It was on-the-job workforce training. Is that going to be afforded to the students of the future? One polytech the engagement of—I'm sorry not the engagement but I suppose we call it a little Pac-Man - type environment where one polytech is expected to take over all the ITOs. I don't think many of those people are going to feel lucky to be Māori in New Zealand.Then we've got the Tomorrow's Schools review—Tomorrow's Schools. A lot of the people I've been talking to within the Māori education sector are saying to me that it's backward. It is backward. It is going to send Māori education back to the boondocks. There is nothing in there for Māori education. Twenty education hubs are going to look after or manage all of these schools made up of Government officials that have no idea what is required within a kura kaupapa Māori rumaki reo or kōhanga reo. It is a damnation on this country to see the education of Māori go through this terrible—well I suppose it's a crash-down of the current education system as we know it. Employment of principals: that is a big concern for our kura kaupapa. They do not want their principals to be engaged by an education hub full of Government officials. They want to be able to have their tino rangatiratanga as part and parcel of looking after their schools.There are so many things this Government is doing to ruin Māori to ruin Māori education and so many times the Māori members on the opposite side on the Government benches have had opportunity after opportunity to have their say and they have kept silent. The Māori people of New Zealand are saying Where are they? Where are those Māori Ministers? Why aren't they standing up for us in this education sector?" That is because they're in hiding. They are taking what is given to them and saying "Oh thank you thank you"—cap in hand—"we thank you we thank you." But they haven't thought about the reverberations that are going to be happening within the Māori education sector.It is shameful. It is a damnation on our education system. I am proud to back Nicky Wagner as our spokesperson for education. I'm proud to stand here as a spokesperson for Māori education and I say to everybody—SPEAKER: Order! Order! The member's time has expired."