Mallard Trevor: Education Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Mallard Trevor: Education Amendment Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:622;Page:18071] 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD (Minister of Education) 
: 
 I move  
That the Education Amendment Bill be now read a first time. 
 It is my intention to move that the bill be referred to the Education and Science Committee at the conclusion of this reading. This bill is another good example of this Government’s commitment to raising the standard of our education system. Unlike the Opposition the Government moves with the times. Current education legislation has been amended considerably and some of it is out of date. This bill starts the process of tidying up and streamlining our education legislation to make it easier to follow and more efficient to implement. It is the first stage in a process to reform and improve the state of education legislation. I expect there will be further legislation in 2006. 
The bill has two areas of significant policy change. These are to establish a new regulatory regime in the early childhood education sector and to extend the national student number to both the compulsory and early childhood education sectors. Early childhood education has been a key focus for this Government. We want every child to get the best start in life. Research has shown that those who participate in quality early childhood education are more likely to succeed later in life. The new regulatory regime in early childhood education sets minimum standards that will help us drive up quality. 
It also gets rid of ambiguities in the current system of licensing of early childhood education centres so that it is easier for services to understand what is required of them to meet licensing standards. I see that even in some of our more affluent suburbs there are problems with getting the categories right in making applications for licences or for discretionary grants. This bill involves a simplification in that area. 
Our approach to early childhood education contrasts starkly with that of the Opposition. Dr Brash has already said that he would do away with the policy of 20 hours’ free education per week. He did not say “by lunchtime” he did say “after the next election” but I think that one thing is for certain: children will be getting their 20 hours’ free education—and Dr Brash will be gone. [ 
Interruption 
] Paul Swain will be working to keep our early childhood centres full of children. 
Hon Paul Swain 
: I will be on the pension! 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: He will be on the pension and they will be getting their free early childhood education. The thing we know is that after the next election there will be a change in the spokesperson on education in the Opposition. We think that Bill English will go back to being leader again. Thankfully though the chances of Opposition members being involved in setting policy will not happen for a very long time. 
The extension of the National Student Number throughout the whole education sector will allow much more efficient collection and collation of information. The National Student Number is already used in the senior secondary school and tertiary sectors to keep students’ academic records and to ensure the efficient and accurate funding of our education institutions. An offence provision is included for any instance where the National Student Number is misused. The maximum fine is $15000. Other amendments in the Education Amendment Bill are designed to improve administration efficiency to transfer and update some sections of the older legislation still in use in the Education Act 1989 and sections that are no longer necessary are repealed. We do need legislation for the 21st century to support an education system that will provide us with the skills and knowledge required to be an effective nation. Legislation needs to be easy to access and to understand. This bill does not totally achieve that but it is a step in the right direction and I commend the first reading of the Education Amendment Bill 2004 to the House.