9. Question No. 9—EducationERICA STANFORD (National—East Coast Bays) to the Minister of EducationQuestion No. 9—Education9. ERICA STANFORD (National—East Coast Bays) to the Minister of Education: On what date did she first become aware that her answer to an oral question on 22 February 2023 was incorrect and did she attend a meeting with her staff on 9 February referred to in an email sent by her office to the Ministry of Education stating FYI the Minister's office are looking to potentially release the Term 3 attendance data early next week. Something we can chat about at our meeting later today"?Hon JAN TINETTI (Minister of Education): To the first part of the question on 1 May 2023 when the Speaker wrote to me regarding the matter which I accepted and subsequently made a personal statement in the House on 2 May to clarify that. To the second part of the question no.Erica Stanford: How could she have been so very adamant in answers to oral questions in this House that her office had no say over the release of the attendance data when emails released under the Official Information Act (OIA) show that her office played an active role in planning the release of the term 3 attendance data to coincide with her political announcement on attendance?Hon JAN TINETTI: That was my understanding at the time.Erica Stanford: Why did she state in answers to oral questions on 22 February that the Ministry of Education are responsible for the release of the attendance data and that "I have no say over that." when the Ministry of Education emailed her office on three separate occasions asking when the data will be released?Hon JAN TINETTI: Because the data is the ministry's data and it is their data to release. That was my understanding at the time and that is what I stand by in my answer on 22 February. Subsequently Mr Speaker you have written to me and I have given a personal explanation and I absolutely agree with your ruling and stand by it.Erica Stanford: Is she expecting this House to believe that her staff in her ministerial office didn't inform her in the six weeks before recess that her answers were misleading given it was those same staff who were actively planning the release of the data to coincide with her political announcement?Hon JAN TINETTI: I was not aware of the correspondence the member is referring to before question time on 22 February. My staff informed me about it afterwards. However I still felt my answers reflected what I was intending them to mean at the time of delivery which is that the Ministry of Education are responsible for the collation and release of the term 3 attendance data.Erica Stanford: In relation to the answers she just gave where she said that her staff did tell her after that supplementary answers were incorrect why at that point didn't she ask them whether or not they were actively involved in delaying the date of the release of the data?Hon JAN TINETTI: Because the data is the ministry's data and it is their data to release.Erica Stanford: Isn't it true that in December when she saw the term 3 attendance data she actively worked to delay its release then told this House she played no part in determining its release date and only corrected her statement 10 weeks later when she was forced to because of an OIA release of emails showing her staff actively planning to delay the data to coincide with her political announcement?Hon JAN TINETTI: No. [Interruption]SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! Order! I'm just going to remind the National Party that they have one more supplementary should they wish to use it but I'm almost tempted to take it off them after that little display. Do you—[Interruption] Well it's just in case you didn't realise. Chris Penk: Not now thanks. SPEAKER: Thank you."