Hipkins Chris: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeHipkins Chris: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 03 November 2015. Volume:709;Page:7565. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]9.CHRIS HIPKINS (Labour—Rimutaka) to the Minister of Education: Does she stand by the statement made on her behalf regarding Early Childhood Education that “this Government believes firmly that it is not only about funding; it is actually about quality and participation”?Hon HEKIA PARATA (Minister of Education): I absolutely stand by the Acting Minister of Education’s statement. We know that participation in good quality early childhood education helps kids achieve at school and beyond. This will be accomplished only if we focus on participation—kids actually being there—as well as the quality of services and funding. That is why this Government has not only invested so strongly in early childhood education—almost doubling investment since 2008 to $1.6 billion—but is also focusing on raising participation.Chris Hipkins: Why did the Government reduce funding for early childhood education services that have 100 percent fully qualified and registered teachers?Hon HEKIA PARATA: The Government made a decision in 2010 not to pursue a previous Labour Government policy and that is what our Government did. In the meantime we have nearly doubled—we have not cut funding. Going from $790 million to $1.6 billion is doubling the investment. That is not a cut at all in anybody’s language. And moreover we have seen a significant increase in the number of teacher-led centre-based early childhood education providers in the 80-plus percent funding range which means there has been an increase in teacher-led centred funding.Chris Hipkins: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I do not think the question could have been any more specific than asking why the Government decided to make—Mr SPEAKER: I listened to the answer and it was very clearly answered.Chris Hipkins: Is she saying that the only reason that the National Government cut funding for services with 100 percent qualified staff is that it was the Labour Government’s idea?Hon HEKIA PARATA: International research is really clear that quality is made up of funding of parent participation of qualified teachers and of ratios. New Zealand is one of the top three—[Interruption] New Zealand is in the top three in the world for all of those things.Chris Hipkins: How does reducing funding to early childhood services that employ fully qualified staff like kindergartens increase quality particularly given those very kindergartens are now making teachers redundant and are reducing hours of staff because of funding shortfalls?Hon HEKIA PARATA: It means that we can fund wider choice for parents. It means that parent-led centres such as kōhanga reo and Playcentre also can be funded so parents can choose which ones they send their children to. Meantime funding has not been cut.Chris Hipkins: Did the National Government reduce the per-child funding rate for services that employ 100 percent fully qualified teachers?Hon HEKIA PARATA: I cannot speak to the specific per-child funding rate in 2010. What I can tell the member is that the per-child rate has gone up—that for every dollar a parent pays the Government pays $4.80. It has been increased. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Question No. 10 Dr Parmjeet Parmar. [Interruption] I did not hear the interjection but they are to cease. I call question No. 10.