Street Maryan: Education (Polytechnics) Amendment Bill — In Committee 
Street Maryan: Education (Polytechnics) Amendment Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:659;Page:8533] 
Hon MARYAN STREET (Labour) 
: 
 I shall go to the amendments that are in front of the Committee of the whole House at the moment because they go to the heart of some of the concerns we have about this legislation. I listened carefully to the Minister of Tertiary Education’s contribution earlier and still I was not able to divine the purpose of this legislation from her comments. It is completely untrue to say that the previous Government ran the polytechs into the ground; in fact it is this Government that has axed the quality reinvestment fund which was one of those sources of funding that polytechs could apply to in order to ensure that they were able to continue delivering the offerings that their regions required. So that is one of the things that has been cut and of course there are adult and community education cuts yet to come in the polytech sector—but we will save that issue for another day. 
I am particularly concerned that every National member opposite clearly has been bludgeoned into submission by the Minister and feels unable to contribute to this discussion. I have a great deal of respect for Allan Peachey who is the chair of the Education and Science Committee. I know that he will feel very strongly about this legislation because there is not a piece of the education sector about which he does not feel strongly and about which he is not informed. I regret that those members have been silenced by the incompetence of the Minister and prevented from saying anything in the Chamber. The debate lacks rejoinder because of their silence and the lack of rejoinder means that they know that this is shonky legislation and will make life for the polytechs worse not better. 
I have tabled a number of amendments and I am very pleased with the amendment tabled by the Maori Party and I want to speak to that. We will support it; in fact the Government could have silenced many of our criticisms if it had indicated whether it would support it. If the Government supports the Maori Party which is after all its confidence and supply partner and its best mate when it comes to flying flags then that might have silenced a lot of our criticism because my amendments go to the representative nature of the polytech councils. So in the omnibus amendment which the members opposite may wish to take note of—although I doubt it—I suggest that five members be appointed by the Minister and that those five include a staff member a student a member of the community served by the polytech a member of the iwi served by the polytech and the polytech’s chief executive. So there would be some guaranteed positions on the polytechnic council. 
Secondly the amendment then says that six members would be appointed by the council according to its statute. That would let the polytech decide in accordance with its own statutes the composition of the dominant membership on the polytech council. That is the omnibus amendment which is trying to avoid the Minister having control of the polytech councils; that is a dangerous precedent. If the members opposite cannot see that—I am sure Mr Peachey can—then more fool them because this legislation is the thin end of a wedge for the tertiary education sector. Couple this with the fact that the Minister has not given one iota of a reason but reverts retreats into that obstinacy about which I spoke earlier which is no position for a Minister of Tertiary Education. If however the Maori Party amendment should fail I would seek the support of the Maori Party for our amendment our omnibus amendment which achieves similar things in slightly different terms. We are prepared to support the amendment that the Maori Party has put up.