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• Scoop Audio: New Zealand will join the Copenhagen accord on climate change – as long as everyone else does.

That was the message Monday as Prime Minister John Key restated his commitment to reducing the country’s carbon emissions to 10-20 percent below 1990 levels.

“This is a constructive step forward toward developing a comprehensive global view on climate change and reinforces New Zealand’s ongoing commitment to doing our fair share to resolving this global problem,” he said.

But the there were a number of caveats: the deal would be dependent on comparable efforts by other countries, international rules for land use and forestry, an efficient carbon market and a limited impact on New Zealand’s unemployment rate.

“If those conditions aren’t met and other countries don’t step up New Zealand will reduce its emissions target.

“Ultimately we need the big emitting countries – the developing countries in there; China and Brazil - to be playing their part alongside the United States and other developed countries.”

In other news, Key dismissed talk of a rift between National and the Maori Party over the new national standards policy.

Associate education minister and Maori Party leader Pita Sharples had previously supported the policy, which rates literacy and numeracy levels, but said Monday he now feared it would encourage parents' “picking and choosing” some schools while stigmatising others.

Key said he did not believe Sharples’ criticisms were a breach of his Cabinet responsibilities and ministers were entitled to their own views.

He had since met with Sharples and “put his mind at ease”, but the Government had not yet resolved the issue, he said.

The Government would not prevent the media from publishing league tables, he said.

“That’s the process we want to work through, which is how we balance transparency around schooling and results with accurate information.

“We’ll start gathering that in 2011 and present it in 2012.”

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Deaf Ears: Speaker On Support For Mojo Mathers

Scoop Audio: In a press conference this afternoon Speaker Lockwood Smith defended his handling of requests for support for profoundly deaf MP Mojo Mathers' participation in Parliament, and said he was "deeply concerned" by the way the issue had been portrayed.

Earlier today the Greens said they had been told they would have to fund support Mathers requires out of their own budget. More>>