Cosgrove Clayton: General Debate 
Cosgrove Clayton: General Debate 
[Volume:656;Page:5458] 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE (Labour—Waimakariri) 
: 
 I move  
That the House take note of miscellaneous business 
. I want to tell the House a story about the little 12-year-old girl I made reference to in my question to the Minister of Education during question time today. I preface my statements by saying that I do not have implied permission to talk about this little girl; I have the absolute permission of her mum Julie Baker. 
Brittany Graham is 12 years old. She was born prematurely she is lucky to be alive and she has struggled to survive her 12 years. Brittany and her mum are courageous individuals. Brittany as I said during question time has cerebral palsy. She requires the fulltime assistance at Addington School of physical therapy through conductive education every day. 
Brittany is a girl who to use her mum’s words was not going to make it. The Government spent an inordinate amount of money helping Brittany into this world looking after her special needs and looking after her health needs and at the age of 12 her mum tells me—and I have met Brittany—she is making it. For the first time she can stand up with the aid of a ladder. For the first time in 18 months a little girl who has a blocked bowel and who has difficulties with her bodily functions is off her medication and is making it. 
Brittany’s mum said to me: “You know the Government has had its way cutting $2.5 million annually nationwide out of the special needs budget—that is $114000 annually cut out of Addington School’s budget.” Brittany’s mum made an interesting point. She said the Government has spent a packet of dough on her daughter but that the cost of Brittany going back on medication as she fails medically because of the lack of physical therapy will far outstrip the small sum of $114000 that goes to Brittany and the other kiddies with the same special needs—the most vulnerable at Addington School. 
That mother came to me and asked for help and we talked about this publicly. I have questioned the Minister of Education and I have asked the Minister why she is prepared to fund $35 million as an increase to private schools but is prepared to cut the knees out from under the most vulnerable; the Brittany Grahams the mums like Julie Baker—the people who need it most. The Minister sent a letter through her department to the principal of Addington School—and in case there is a witch hunt I tell the House that I got the letter through a parent and not the principal so she should not be hung out to dry. 
The letter was interesting because it confirmed a number of things. It confirmed that the package funding—that is the therapy package—was introduced ran for 3 years from 1999 to 2002 and then rolled over annually. For the 9 years of the Labour Government this funding was available. There was no question about it. Then the letter dated Budget day went on to say that during the 2009 Budget process the Government looked at all the funding and decided to discontinue the additional physical therapy for students on the Ongoing and Reviewable Resourcing Scheme. It was as blunt as that—it was gone. 
All the bleating from the Minister was to the effect that somehow 7000 students eligible for Ongoing and Reviewable Resourcing Scheme funding would be treated far more fairly and the money would be spread around. Well does she not realise that yes most of those students do need that funding but most do not have critically high special needs and do not have the requirement for physical therapy every day? Does the Minister not realise that most of those students do not have the requirement for conductive education like a girl called Brittany Graham who cannot stand under her own steam? 
Julie Baker does not like talking publicly about her daughter—and what mother would? But she said to me and others—and this is graphic—that for years she has had to take care of six pairs of damp underwear from her daughter every day because she has not been able to control her bodily functions. Julie Baker reckons that in 2 years’ time if this therapy went on her daughter Brittany Graham would be toilet trained to use her words. But the fear that she now faces is that Brittany will have to be withdrawn from school. Her fear is that mainstreaming—if that is the agenda for this little girl—simply will not work given the intensive therapy she needs. 
I say to another Cabinet Minister Kate Wilkinson who occasionally resides in my electorate that she has done nothing about it. She is part of the decision and she should front up to Brittany Graham and Julie Baker.