Costley TimTIM COSTLEY (National—Ōtaki): E ngā mate e ngā parekawakawa o rātou otirā o tātou ka tangihia ka mihia e tātou i tēnei wā.[To the dearly departed the veils of grief of those passed indeed of all of us we grieve for them we acknowledge them at this time.]Rest in peace Efeso.Well today marks officially the last day of summer. Fun fact: I was due to be born on 29 February—irrelevant but fun.We're at the last day of summer and what a summer it has been for the good people of the Ōtaki electorate. It was a bright summer not just because they've got a National Government and a National MP but because of the great events we have had like the Kāpiti Food Fair and I should acknowledge Helene and her team; the Kāpiti Strawberry Festival with Julie and her crew; the royal show; the Horowhenua AP & I Show with Kyle and Jill and their team—they hosted the royal show outside of a big centre for the first time ever on their centenary year and they put on a world-class event.Then of course—I'm sure everyone's got it in their diary—there's the Medieval Market a big event in the Levin calendar. Anna and her team put on a fantastic family day out. And who can forget the Ōtaki Kite Festival? What a weekend that was that Cam and the team put on. I reckon it was one of the best beach festivals in New Zealand bringing out families and kite enthusiasts—is that their name?—from all around the world and the best kite-makers in New Zealand from James Meager's Ashburton.But there are two to go. This weekend I look forward to joining Alice and Angelina at Fale Pasifika. I'll miss Deb and her Cook Island doughnuts this year but I'm looking forward to a day there and then finishing the night at the Waikanae Movies in the Park. They must love having me as their MP because the late-night movie this year is Top Gun: Maverick—what a weekend we have to wrap up summer.But there is one even better thing that we have had this summer: the ban on cellphones in schools. Now I know that technically it doesn't come into effect until the start of term 2 but the smart principals—which is most of them—and the school boards are already bringing it in. They can see that this is a great direction to head in and I am pretty excited about it.I'm one of those mean dads: I wouldn't let my kids have a cellphone until they got to high school. I get up in the morning and I thank the late great Steve Jobs for inventing Screen Time so that I can shut down those phones. I can cut off their internet at the push of a button. They get only half an hour on social media not just because it's not real life but because I like actually talking to my kids when I'm home and I just think that kids are way better and do a lot better when they're off those screens.What are we going to get them to focus on instead? We're going to get them to focus on the basics brilliantly. Do you know what? Some teachers have even said to me Well we don't feel comfortable having to take kids' phones off them."—this was last year—"We don't really want to be the bad cop." So I'd just say "Look let me be the bad cop. Let the great education Minister we finally have after the last six years"—the Hon Erica Stanford—"be the bad cop with me on this one issue." We'll focus them instead on learning the basics brilliantly. It's something that I really believe in.You might find the odd teenager that says they don't like us for taking their phones but actually most of them say to me "We don't like you taking our phones away but we acknowledge that it's actually probably the best thing for us." You might find someone that doesn't like losing their phone at school but I'd challenge you to find many parents that don't think it's a great thing to get their kids off the phones and focused on learning the basics like in primary schools where they'll be spending an hour every day learning maths an hour every day on reading and an hour every day on writing.I've had firsthand experience of this. When we were living in the UK one of my daughters did the first year of her primary school there and it was light years from where we have been in New Zealand. That was not because I believe their teachers are better than the great teachers we have in New Zealand and not because I believe that their kids were any better—I think our kids are fantastic with all the potential to achieve great things in this world—but they got taught phonics. My mother-in-law who's a resource teacher: learning and behaviour has espoused the value of phonics for such a long time and she's absolutely right. My mum a maths teacher used to lament that these kids would have to get their calculators out to do basic addition and subtraction. Well now they're getting out a phone to get the calculator app but they're also opening up their music they're chatting and they're playing games.Let's get them back on what they should be focused on which is learning the basics brilliantly because our kids have a great future but they need to achieve in school. They actually need to achieve and be set up to succeed in life.I'm proud of my family. My parents my in-laws and my brother are all schoolteachers—you can't avoid them.I think the kids are fantastic but by giving them the tools to succeed and to train up that's the best future and I'm proud to be part of this Government which has been relentlessly focused in the first 100 days on educational achievement for our kids. Steve Jobs and Screen Time have a great place at home but at school I'm glad my kids and everyone else's kids will be focused on learning the basics brilliantly."