Harawira Hone: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeHarawira Hone: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 12 March 2014. Volume:697;Page:16560. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]10.HONE HARAWIRA (Leader—Mana)to the Deputy Prime Minister: What more is the Government planning to do to ensure all New Zealand children have food to eat each school day in light of the recent Treasury finding that the number of children living in poverty has increased to 285000?Hon BILL ENGLISH (Deputy Prime Minister):First I would disagree with the member’s assertion about the number of children. Treasury recently announced that it had discovered an error in its high-level statistics. No one’s actual circumstances in the real world have changed one bit as a result of its statistical error. Secondly the Government believes that parents have the primary responsibility for feeding their children and I think most New Zealanders would agree with that. But we do know that some children go to school hungry through no fault of their own so the Government co-funds a breakfast in schools programme with Fonterra and Sanitarium in any school in New Zealand that wants to run it.Hone Harawira: With the Ministry of Health figures showing that an estimated 100000 kids are going to school hungry each day and the KickStart Breakfast and KidsCan websites showing that they are feeding about 20000 kids on a good day meaning that 80000 kids are still going to school hungry every day will the Government now do what 70 percent of New Zealanders are calling for and that is to initiate a comprehensive Government-funded food in schools programme in all low-decile schools?Hon BILL ENGLISH: No we will not do that and there are a couple of reasons why. One is that although the Government does set out to support those schools that believe they need a breakfast in schools programme—and as I have said it is open to any school in New Zealand that wants to run it—we do not believe that the Government should take the place of parents in feeding children. We are happy to assist where there is need and we have in place a joint venture with Fonterra and Sanitarium to achieve that. Some schools have taken that up. Some schools feel that they do not need to.Hone Harawira: With child poverty now at record levels and students from Naenae College asking “Why can’t John Key make a smart decision and feed the kids?” can you please tell the House what steps the Government is taking to ensure that the tonnes of fish being dumped regularly by Countdown will be made available to feed the tens of thousands of New Zealand kids still going to school hungry every day?Hon BILL ENGLISH: I can only repeat the answer I gave and that is that the Government believes it has struck about the right balance for assisting those children where there is genuine hardship and an inability by parents to feed them without instituting some nationwide programme which would be quite likely to undermine the sense of responsibility that families have for feeding their own children. Of course in the longer run these children are best served by the other measures the Government is taking alongside the breakfast in schools programme to ensure that when they get to school they actually achieve something and that we do not tolerate a system that says that because they are poor and hungry they cannot learn.Brendan Horan: What would the Deputy Prime Minister say if he was asked by the parents students and staff of Naenae College whether he would commit to ensuring that New Zealand’s next cohort of children receive the best possible start in their first years as recommended by the Health Committee’s unanimous report and will he commit to policies to ensure that every child has adequate nutrition at school consistent with that unanimous report?Hon BILL ENGLISH: I would say to the students of Naenae College that the Government is committed to the best start for children and is working alongside those people who care for children every single day which is actually not the Government; it is the teachers and the parents. Where those children do come to school hungry the school already now has the option of going into the breakfast in schools programme. But just as important for those children is that when they get to school they get taught under policies from a Government that has aspirations for those young New Zealanders and that believes that every single one of them can learn and a Government that is willing to hold the public education system and itself to account for assisting those young children to achieve.Brendan Horan: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. It was a very long answer but I did ask whether he would commit—Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member can resume his seat. I listened to the question. I listened to the answer. It has been addressed.