Hipkins Chris: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeHipkins Chris: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 31 July 2013. Volume:692;Page:12117. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]10.CHRIS HIPKINS (Labour—Rimutaka)to theMinister of Education: Does she stand by her statement with regard to the teaching profession that “being unregistered is not the same as being unqualified”?Hon HEKIA PARATA (Minister of Education):Yes. There are already around 1200 unregistered hard-working teachers in the education system adding value. All schools can already employ staff who are not fully registered with the New Zealand Teachers Council but who are qualified in their particular area of expertise. Either the member has not done his homework and does not know that or he does know and dismisses the significant contribution that these unregistered yet qualified teachers make.Chris Hipkins: What is the purpose of teacher registration?Hon HEKIA PARATA: It is to codify the requirements for teachers.Chris Hipkins: What criteria does someone need to meet in order to become a registered teacher other than hold a teaching qualification?Hon HEKIA PARATA: The New Zealand Teachers Council holds the registered teachers’ criteria.Chris Hipkins: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. That did not in any way address the question—what criteria does someone need to meet in order to become a registered teacher?Mr SPEAKER: Order! Could the member repeat the question to the Minister.Chris Hipkins: What criteria does someone need to meet in order to become a registered teacher other than hold a teaching qualification?Hon HEKIA PARATA: I would have to get the detail for the member but the New Zealand Teachers Council—[Interruption ] There are 12 elements to the registered teachers’ criteria. I am unable to list them here but I am happy if the member would like me to table them. [Interruption ]Chris Hipkins: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I accept we are probably not going to get very far with this because the Minister does not have the information with her but I do want to raise with you an issue about what is reasonable to expect when a very specific question is asked. The Minister in her answer yesterday drew a distinction between unregistered and unqualified teachers. My question today was specific about that. It therefore is not unreasonable for me to expect that she would come to the House prepared to answer questions about teacher registration.Mr SPEAKER: At the end of the day the member can formulate his supplementary questions as the questioning proceeds and the member has done that and has done it well. It is then over to the Minister to stand and answer and it is quite legitimate for any Minister in this House in answer to a supplementary question to say they do not have that information with them. That is a satisfactory answer. It is a far better answer for any Minister to give than to attempt to guess the situation and end up giving an incorrect answer to this House.Chris Hipkins: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I accept your answer and I will not raise this any further—Mr SPEAKER: Is this a fresh point of order?Chris Hipkins: What I do want to do is ask you to reflect on the extent to which when a very specific question is asked a Minister should be expected to be prepared to answer specific supplementary questions on that.Mr SPEAKER: I have already made that point to the member. The specificity of a primary question is important and I will do everything I can to ensure that a Minister addresses a primary question. A subsequent supplementary question may be very closely related but if the Minister feels that he or she does not have that information at hand to competently answer the question it is quite legitimate for that Minister to say: “I don’t have that information with me.”Chris Hipkins: Which of the criteria for teacher registration does she think are not applicable in the case of those teachers who will be working in charter schools?Hon HEKIA PARATA: In respect of partnership schools kura hourua we are still going through the process as the member knows because he sat on the select committee and the detail was fully available to him. Sponsors may propose that a proportion of the teaching staff not be registered as teachers but that they hold qualifications and until we complete that process I will not be able to give specifics about each case.Chris Hipkins: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I was not asking about any specific case at all. What I asked her was which of the criteria for teacher registration does she think are not applicable in the case of charter schools.Mr SPEAKER: The Minister said they are working on those criteria and until those criteria are finalised she is not prepared to be specific.Hon Trevor Mallard: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. One criterion for registration is that child abusers are not allowed—people who have child abuse convictions—Mr SPEAKER: Order! Can I have the point of order please.Hon Trevor Mallard: The question is that surely a Minister who is half-competent would rule that out.Mr SPEAKER: Order! Order! That is not a satisfactory point of order.