Sharples Pita: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
Sharples Pita: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
[Volume:644;Page:13636] 
3.  
Dr PITA SHARPLES (Co-Leader—Maori Party) 
 to the  
Minister for Tertiary Education 
: Is he satisfied that New Zealand universities are fulfilling their equity obligations under the tertiary education strategy; if so what response does he have to the situation at Auckland University which one newspaper today summarised as: “Fears held for poor Maori and Pacific Islanders”? 
Hon PETE HODGSON (Minister for Tertiary Education) 
: 
 The member asks an important question. The answer is yes mainly because there will be more university places next year than this year and more places still the following year. There is an increase in access to universities in this country. 
Dr Pita Sharples 
: What action will the Minister take to ensure Maori students are not being disproportionately disadvantaged by the restricted entry policy of Auckland University? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: The member may not be aware that every university is required to show how it will increase participation and achievement of under-represented groups including Maori and Pacific Island students in its investment plan. Every university does so. 
Dr Ashraf Choudhary 
: Has the Minister seen any reports on the increases in student numbers and in funding to New Zealand universities? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: The funding increase over the past couple of years has been about 18 percent or 19 percent. The increase in student numbers from last year until next is forecast at somewhere about 4 percent or 5 percent. So the number of full-time students will increase it is thought from about 107000 to 112000. 
Judy Turner 
: Is the Minister satisfied with the direction of the tertiary education strategy for regional polytechnics and will he assure the House that the strategy will not suck young people out of the regions into major cities increasing the unlikelihood they will ever return? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: I think if there is any trend at all in the way the polytech funding and plans are going it would be to increase the amount of in-region activity not to decrease it. So all other things being equal that would see the opposite effect to the one the member suggests. 
Dr Pita Sharples 
: Given the response to my question how then will the Government honour its commitments in its tertiary education strategy to support affordable equitable access to tertiary education across the sector? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: The member will be aware of 8 years of activity to increase the affordability of education for New Zealanders. In the case of university students the number of Maori students has increased in recent years—it is now up at around 13000; it used to be 12000 or thereabouts a few years ago. For Pacific Islanders the increase has been even greater. It has gone from about 6000 in 2000 to about 9000 now. These are useful increases. I am not for a minute suggesting that they are sufficient increases but certainly the increase in Maori and Pacific Island participation is something this House can be very proud of. 
Dr Pita Sharples 
: What response does the Minister have to Efeso Collins who believes that students from poorer backgrounds would be excluded under the new regime at Auckland University describing the outcome of the actions as creating “an underclass”—an analysis confirmed by both the Auckland University Students Association and Dr Bedggood a member of the Association of University Staff of New Zealand? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: I think what has happened is that a number of these commentators have made an understandable mistake in thinking that the number of places in our universities or polytechnics are somehow being capped at their current level and that therefore because of an increase in demand some students would be excluded who otherwise would not be. The truth is a little different. The truth is that we are moving from unplanned and open-ended growth to planned and managed growth but growth nonetheless and as a result of that we will see more students in polytechnics and universities next year than we have in this year. 
Hon Georgina te Heuheu 
: More underclasses. 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: I am not sure what that prattle from the other side of the House has to say but I can assure the member that we will have an increase in participation in our tertiary education not a decrease.