Katherine Rich MP
National Party Education spokeswoman

15 May 2007

Crackdown on illegal teachers needed

It is time to get serious about the more than 3,500 teachers who are potentially working illegally in New Zealand schools, says National’s Education spokeswoman Katherine Rich.

“The huge number of teachers who have not registered, or failed to re-register in the past year, have not received the Teacher’s Council tick as being capable and they have not been vetted by police. This poses an unacceptable risk to the education of our children.

“Some may have just ‘forgotten’ but, given there are still 3,500 teaching illegally after this year’s amnesty, some are clearly flouting the registration requirements.

“The big question is why? I suspect in a small number of cases there could be serious concerns that may affect their registration and this could be of huge significance to children in their classrooms.

“The Minister needs to explain what his strategy is to ensure compliance with registration otherwise confidence in the sector will be undermined.”

ENDS

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