Pillay Lynne: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Pillay Lynne: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:626;Page:21136] 
8.  
LYNNE PILLAY (Labour—Waitakere) 
 to the  
Minister of Education 
: How is the Government improving the quality of education provided in schools? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD (Minister of Education) 
: 
 Our Government is committed to ensuring that every child can fill his or her potential. We have invested in over 3000 extra teachers over and above those required for roll growth. We do not take a part-time approach to our duties. We have increased school operations grants by over 15 percent per student in real terms. Every teacher in the country can now get a laptop. We have invested in information and communications technology professional development and key areas such as literacy and numeracy. There is a lot yet to come. 
Lynne Pillay 
: Has the Minister seen any proposals for changing the provision of schooling in New Zealand? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: Yes I have. I have seen a very radical proposal that most schools would be privately owned and operated. The person advocating that also said: “For my part I don’t care who owns the schools.” The person who said that is Don Brash. [ 
Interruption 
] Nick Smith said: “Very sensible.” to get it on the record. I do not know whether that is helpful for the member but the approach that appears to be taken is the approach that was used in Taranaki and other areas to privatise the electricity assets shift them to a trust and then hock them off to their mates. 
Lynne Pillay 
: Has the Minister seen any proposals to remove a child’s right to attend his or her local school? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: Yes. Under current legislation every child is entitled to attend his or her local school. I have seen a proposal to do away with that requirement and to introduce a scheme whereby school principals could hand-pick the kids that they want and the ones that they do not want. But the Opposition says: “No that is not the approach.” Therefore the only possible alternative is to build extra places at those schools that are currently zoned and full. If say 100000 pupils—a relatively small percentage—decided to change schools and to go for that the cost for the building alone would be $2000 million—$2000 million for the school building alone. Opposition members have an AC/DC approach to life but they cannot have it both ways on this. 
Gerry Brownlee 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. If you are to allow that sort of answer from a Minister then you will have to allow members to preface their questions with a similar sort of political comment and I ask you to tell members now whether that will be the new rule or whether you will constrain Ministers to reasonably tight answers on the questions they have been asked. The Minister was asked whether he had seen reports. He could have said: “Yes I have seen a report.” and he may briefly explain what is in it but then to go into the lengths of supposition and lies that he just did is quite inappropriate. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: I agree with the member that the answer was too long as several answers have been today and I have asked members to please keep both questions and answers to reasonable lengths. The member however called the Minister a liar if I heard him correctly. Is that what you were saying? 
Gerry Brownlee 
: Look I did not mean to call the Minister a liar. I withdraw and apologise. But I do replace it with the suggestion that he was being extremely reckless with the truth. 
Sue Kedgley 
: Does the Minister stand by his statement that: “I believe that schools have an important role in promoting healthy food choices to their pupils and … promoting high-fat high-sugar foods is in my view irresponsible …” and will he therefore follow his excellent initiative to amend the educational guidelines to require schools to give priority to physical education by introducing a further amendment requiring that only healthy food can be sold in schools; if not why not? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: I certainly stand by the statement which I am pleased the member has reminded the House of and I think that the answer to the second part of the question is “Wait and see.” 
Bernie Ogilvy 
: Would the Minister agree that character education improves the quality of education provided in schools; if not is he aware of an Auckland University of Technology study showing notable improvements in the school environment through improved behaviour fewer disciplinary actions increased staff stability and increased student attendance since the introduction of character education? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: No and no.