Waititi RawiriRAWIRI WAITITI (Co-Leader—Te Paati Māori): Tēnā tātou e hika mā tēnā tātou i Te Whare talofa lava. Tēnā tātou i te āhuatanga o ō tātou mate ki tērā o tātou pāpā ki a Jack Taumaunu kua whakahoki atu ki Whangārei i tēnei rā nō reira tēnā tātou.[Greetings everyone greetings to us all in the House greetings. Greetings to you all in the light of the many recent deaths specifically of one of our uncles Jack Taumaunu who has returned to Whangārei today therefore greetings one and all.]Well I'm reminded of my own schooling experience and the experiences of many other Māori in the mainstream education system today and I stand here to address some of the committee's recommendations to keep tamariki in school. Experiences that are so normal for Māori they can't be so easily captured in reports and parliamentary inquiries—experiences of having their taonga ripped from their necks to cover tā moko to cut their hair which is tapu to tangata whenua and tangata moana. I know of too many tamariki who have had to take days off because their school does not provide kai or because their classroom is damp and cold and their winter jacket does not match their uniform or because the teacher pronounces their names wrong when reading out the roll or because they come from poorer whānau who live in poorer communities—housing issues social issues health issues etc. I recently learnt of a teacher in a high decile primary school who would leave the names of the kids whose parents had not paid their school fees on the whiteboard to shame them in front of the kids whose parents had. All the names on the board were Māori. I could go on for days but I only have five minutes.These are the tamariki we are talking about. Most of them do not know how to speak up for themselves against poor teachers and against poor schools. Some of them eventually just stop turning up and who can blame them. It has always been clear to Te Paati Māori that the mainstream Pākehā education system fails our tamariki. It is racist by default. It is a hostile environment for Māori and especially for students from lower income families.So I would like to acknowledge the Education and Workforce Committee for running this inquiry and I would like to endorse a few of the recommendations in particular the recommendation to further support and fund Māori-medium schools. If you need a road map for this feel free to look at Te Paati Māori's policy manifesto which would ensure that all Māori-medium education from kōhanga reo to kura kaupapa kura ā iwi wharekura and whare wānanga are funded equal to their mainstream equivalents. Māori-medium education not only immerses children in te reo Māori but in tikanga kaupapa and wairua Māori. It is a holistic approach that is the foundation of kaupapa like Te Aho Matua which probably should be the kaupapa for every school which provides pathways for education educational cultural social and spiritual achievement and excellence. We also can't lose sight of the fact that most Māori students are in mainstream education. We need to ensure that those students are embraced for who they are are able to learn their reo and history that we invest in Māori models of delivery that there are Māori staff on senior leadership teams and that all teachers are skilled in te reo Māori competencies. I would like to endorse the recommendations that the Government continue to provide period products to schools and continue the school lunches programme. Te Paati Māori would like to see that expanded to free breakfasts and lunch to be funded in all low decile primary and intermediate schools. Te Paati Māori support the committee's view on punishment for absenteeism. We would actually remove the ability for schools to expel students who are below the school leaving age of 16 altogether. We know Māori students make up 50 percent of the students who are excluded from school and the irreparable harm this causes. If you need evidence just look at the fact that 55 percent of prisoners have been kicked out of school. I want to conclude by acknowledging students with disabilities neurodiversity and learning differences who have been most let down by our system. Around 26 percent of Māori identify as disabled 40 percent of the Māori adults with disabilities have no formal education qualification almost double the proportion of non-disabled Māori. We need to massively overhaul funding for support teachers appropriate facilities and professional development for all teachers. I was shocked to find in the Māori Affairs Committee inquiry into learning support for ākonga Māori that of the 600 learning support staff across the country only two full-time equivalents were designated for kura kaupapa Māori and Māori-medium schools. We need to establish a task force led by Māori with the mandate to transform how Māori students with neurodiversity and learning differences are taught and supported. Otherwise they become problematic because these issues they start as behavioural then eventually criminal because this is how the school and society see them. I think a Māori education authority is in order. Kia ora tātou.