Parata Hekia: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeParata Hekia: General Debate[Sitting date: 29 April 2015. Volume:704;Page:3008. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon HEKIA PARATA (Minister of Education):It is really rather sad and depressing that the Opposition uses this general debate in this House of Parliament as a really sad attempt at a comedic performance. What we have in this country is the leadership of a Prime Minister who has focused on what is important to New Zealanders—to the families the hard-working families up and down this country who under this Government have seen and felt the ambition of this Prime Minister and this caucus. We have been committed to what really counts: how we can help families to get the best access to health how we can ensure that those who have been victims of crime get the support that they need how we can ensure that the police are policing our communities and providing the kind of safety that New Zealanders expect and how we can ensure that in education every young person gets the opportunity of the best possible pathway in life. That is what this Government is focused on and that is what this Prime Minister has provided leadership on over the past 6 years and will continue to do in the future. I am proud to serve in this Government on an agenda of this kind of substance.In education parents want the best for their kids and this Government is determined to provide an education system that is nimble is responsive and is modern because we know that a good-quality education is a passport to a stronger future. The carping of the Opposition members demonstrates that they do not understand that. They want to talk about failures of the past while we focus on how we deliver now and into the future. What we see is that in our education system young people are starting earlier staying longer and leaving better qualified. One of the key focuses we have had for kids in terms of our education system is how we can ensure that their parents their families their whānau their aiga are well informed about what makes the difference for a good education. We have done that in real practical and meaningful ways.First and foremost the evidence is that we have put the most ever of any Government into Vote Education. We put in over $10 billion. In early childhood education we have doubled the amount that the Opposition committed to when it was in Government. We are at nearly $1.6 billion and almost 98 percent participation. We know that kids who start behind too often stay behind and we are intolerant of that. We want every child and their family to get the best possible start in life and that is why we have invested so heavily into early childhood education. We are the Government that is prepared to be transparent and accountable.My colleague sitting beside me Minister Tolley when she was the Minister of Education introduced national standards and in 2012 we started requiring schools to report every 6 months to parents. Since then we have gone on to build a Public Achievement Information framework which makes data available in real time on what is actually happening in every school across this country so that parents can partner with the hard-working teachers and principals of the schools that their children are attending to ensure that they are getting the lift they need and deserve. In terms of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement we have built pathways into the sectors that make the most difference in our economy and we have built trades academies and Youth Guarantee initiatives which help these kids to get the best education possible. We have held public meetings and community meetings so that parents and whānau can come along and learn about the National Certificate of Educational Achievement.Ron Mark: Come to one in the Wairarapa then.Hon HEKIA PARATA: We have done this in the Wairarapa as we have done it in every other part of the country. We have worked with the Education Review Office to ensure that parents get answers to the questions that they can ask of their teachers.Rt Hon Winston Peters: What about at Whangaruru?Hon HEKIA PARATA: And yes Whangaruru I say to the recent member for Northland who is suddenly taking an interest in education. Yes they have had difficulties but this Government has not resiled from tackling difficulties. Actually we do not consider it a failure; we consider it a challenge and we will continue to work on that. We have established a parent portal on the Network for Learning so that parents can available to them in real time meaningful useful and accessible information. We have been looking to encourage more and more schools to provide e-profiles. For the member for Northland generationally in the 21st century that means parents in real time can go on to this thing called social media and find out what is happening with their kids how they can work with them and how they can understand what their kids need in order to get a better education. So the member can moan on and whinge on—