✨ Government Policy Announcements
NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE
No. 198
Discussions will take place in order to institute a new system of paid parental leave.
My government’s aim is to build a modern, progressive system of employment relations which is responsive to both human needs and the demands of a rapidly changing economy.
Central to the new information-based economy which is emerging is the growth of human capital. We need to improve substantially both the quality and the nature of the skills that our people possess.
The development of skills starts in the earliest stages of life. Getting a good start is crucial to later success. My government will expand early intervention programmes. The first step will be to fund the Plunket Line service on a 24 hour a day, seven days a week basis.
Increased assistance will be made available to the early childhood education sector. My government will require teacher registration and ongoing professional development in this sector. Eventually, the government will need to turn its attention to the question of pay parity for kindergarten teachers. Kindergartens will also be returned to the state sector.
In the compulsory education sector, my government’s top priority is to close the gaps in opportunity which have opened up between children in schools in our different communities. My government considers that bulk funding has been both divisive and unfair. It will end, and funding budgeted for it will be redistributed to all schools on a fair basis.
Attention will be paid to the improvement of quality and standards. Homework centres will be trialed to boost educational achievement. The training and professional development of teachers will be improved. Problems with the provision of special education services will be tackled.
A new approach will be taken to strengthen education in rural areas as part of a general upgrade of rural services. Incentives will be provided to attract staff to rural schools. Where the future of any school comes into question, there will be genuine consultation with the local community and local views will be respected in any decision that is made.
My government will launch major new initiatives in post-compulsory education. A new Apprenticeship Act will be introduced. Amended industrial training legislation will be passed to encourage continuous upskilling of the workforce.
The present competitive model in tertiary education will be abandoned. My government will take steps to produce a more differentiated tertiary education sector where the emphasis is on excellence, on the production of the skills required to lift our economic and social performance, and on the intrinsic benefits of education to society. A Tertiary Education Commission will be set up to begin rebuilding a collaborative and cooperative tertiary sector.
In order to improve access to tertiary education, major changes will be made to the student loans scheme. Interest will not be charged on loans for
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VUW Te Waharoa —
NZ Gazette 1999, No 198
NZLII —
NZ Gazette 1999, No 198
✨ LLM interpretation of page content
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Government Policy Initiatives
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🏛️ Governance & Central AdministrationParental leave, Employment relations, Skills development, Early childhood education, Teacher registration, Pay parity, Bulk funding, Educational standards, Rural education, Apprenticeship Act, Tertiary education, Student loans