Turei Metiria: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Turei Metiria: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:624;Page:19556] 
4.  
METIRIA TUREI (Green) 
 to the  
Associate Minister of Education 
: Does he stand by his statement that “the money earned from a tuck shop and uniform sales should not be added on to what a school is earning.”; if so why? 
Hon DAVID BENSON-POPE (Associate Minister of Education) 
: 
 No the quote is incomplete. Clearly revenue that schools derive from trading activities like uniform sales tuck-shop revenue or items such as charging for the use of a school building—once the cost of such activities are deducted—should count towards a school’s balance sheet. The point I have made on a number of occasions is that it is essential not to confuse school donations or extra-curricular activity fees with the revenue from trading sales. The Government funds the teaching of the curriculum but a Government is not required nor should it be required to pay for uniforms or for a student’s lunch. 
Metiria Turei 
: Does the Minister consider it acceptable that students of Otumoetai College who refused to take part in a money-earning work day for the school—work that included breaking up and carrying concrete—were assembled in a school hall of shame and does he agree that the income generated by that sort of bullying approach should also not be added to a school’s earnings? 
Hon DAVID BENSON-POPE 
: I did hear that accusation made on the Linda Clark show this morning but I also heard it refuted by the principal. I certainly will be pleased to try to find out for the member more detailed information about what transpired. 
Hon Bill English 
: Why does the Minister prefer to spend new education dollars on bureaucracy such as a doubling of the amount spent on policy advice in the Ministry of Education and a trebling of the amount spent on administering regulations leaving schools and parents to fight in court over fees that schools desperately need to keep running? 
Hon DAVID BENSON-POPE 
: I am afraid the facts do not substantiate the allegation made in the questioner’s statement. In fact the percentage of education funding allocated to the Ministry of Education has remained constant at 15 or 16 percent since 1999 as has the 84 percent of Vote Education dedicated to service providers. In terms of funding the member surely is aware as most members of the community are that in the schools’ area this Government has increased education funding for schools by $1 billion from $3.5 billion to $4.5 billion since Labour was in power. 
Helen Duncan 
: What do schools receive by way of donations? 
Hon DAVID BENSON-POPE 
: According to the latest information available based on what schools reported to the Ministry of Education schools received on average $126 per student in donations in 2003. However the levels of donations are highly variable. Fifty-one percent of schools recorded that they received no donation. I have reservations about the quality of that information especially after listening this morning to a school principal describe something that should have been a voluntary donation as an activity fee. That is why I have asked the ministry to investigate the quality of the information it receives from schools as part of its investigation into how much and by what method school donations and activity fees are collected. 
Sue Kedgley 
: Is he concerned that many schools are so cash strapped that they are forced to get extra funding from vending machine sales of unhealthy high-sugar drinks and advertisements for fast-food companies appearing in school dairies and on school playing grounds and playing fields; if so will he widen the inquiry into school charges to include all school funding earnings donations and corporate sponsorship; if not why not? 
Hon DAVID BENSON-POPE 
: No I believe that the level of funding of schools is appropriate. New Zealand ranks third in the OECD on the percentage of GDP that goes to State schools compared with Australia at 15th the UK at 19th the US at 11th and Canada at 20th. As I said earlier this Government has increased school funding by $1 billion since 1999 from $3.5 billion to $4.5 billion and the operations grant has increased by 14.4 percent in real terms since 1999. 
Metiria Turei 
: Does the Minister then have no concern for the North Shore principal who has turned school caretaker in a desperate attempt to cut costs or Kaipara Flats School which can afford a caretaker for only 10 hours a week who then works the rest of the time on a voluntary basis and when will this Government significantly increase the public education funding to ensure our nation has a free public education system? 
Hon DAVID BENSON-POPE 
: As the member is aware the operations grant is constantly being reviewed but I can inform the questioner that the percentage raised by way of parent contribution has remained almost completely static over the recent period. 
Metiria Turei 
: Does the Minister agree with the comment made by the New Zealand Trustees Association that if all parents chose not to pay the so-called optional donations there would not be enough money to run the education system; if not where does he think the $460 million raised by parents in 2003 would have come from? 
Hon DAVID BENSON-POPE 
: Firstly let me correct the figure that the member has used. I am advised that the net amount of locally raised funds that schools received in 2003 was closer to $262 million once the costs of activities were deducted. Unfortunately she used the figure that includes trading revenue that was alluded to in the primary question. All I can say to the questioner is that the fact that 51 percent of our schools report to the ministry that they charge no such donations is a very powerful answer to the question.