Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More
Parliament

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | Video | Questions Of the Day | Search

 

Nanaia Mahuta, withdraw your bill & debate something useful

Nanaia Mahuta, withdraw your bill and debate something useful

Nanaia Mahuta’s Charter Schools (Application of Official Information and Ombudsmen Acts) Bill would represent a pointless overreach into private management decisions, says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“It would be an overreach for the government to force a private organisation to respond to OIA requests. The government contracts with many groups, such as building companies, but they’re not subject to the OIA.

“There are already strict provisions in place to ensure that partnership schools are even more accountable than state schools. They publicise their results every year, and report to the Ministry of Education and the Partnership School Authorisation Board every quarter, against contracted performance standards.

“As schools of choice, they are directly accountable to families – they have to attract and retain willing students in order to receive funding. And unlike state schools, failing partnership schools can be shut down, a provision that has already been used in one case.

“The truth is that this Bill is cynically motivated so that opponents of partnership schools (who have previously used legal proceedings and blacklisting of partnership school teachers and students) will bombard them with OIA requests, which are time-consuming to process even for well-resourced government departments.

“We wonder whether Nanaia Mahuta has discussed this reality with her constituents at the Tainui-affiliated Kia Ata Mai school in Hamilton. If she hasn’t, she should.

“The failure of Chris Hipkins’ charter school abolition bill yesterday should have been a clear signal that the union-driven opposition to these schools is going nowhere.

“Nanaia Mahuta should withdraw her bill so we can debate one of the many actually useful members’ bills, like the End of Life Choice Bill for example.”

ENDS


Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines


Gordon Campbell: On The US Opposition To Mortgage Interest Deductibility For Landlords


Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don't think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of political capital by giving landlords a huge $2.9 billion tax break via interest deductibility, while still preaching the need for austerity to the disabled, and to everyone else...
More


 
 

Government: Concerns Conveyed To China Over Cyber Activity
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity... More

ALSO:


Government: GDP Decline Reinforces Government’s Fiscal Plan

Declining GDP for the December quarter reinforces the importance of restoring fiscal discipline to public spending and driving more economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says... More

ALSO:


Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.