Mallard's Victims Younger And Younger
Not content with crippling the educations of New Zealand school pupils, Education Minister Trevor Mallard is now
harming our pre-schoolers by failing to properly monitor their education, ACT New Zealand Education Spokesman Deborah
Coddington said today.
"Answers to my written Parliamentary Questions have revealed that from 2000-2003, the Education Review Office has not
been conducting the vital reviews that are so important to the early childhood education sector," Miss Coddington said.
"Since Mr Mallard took office, ERO review officers have visited only 57 percent of all early childcare services -
including kindergartens, playcentres and kohanga reo. Yet these services are supposed to be visited at least once every
three years.
"Ironically, when in Opposition, Mr Mallard slammed then Education Minister Wyatt Creech - in a 1998 media release -
for the very same failure. Yet, things have become even worse under this Minister's `do as I say, not as I do' form of
leadership.
"The education of many young Kiwis is suffering. Mr Mallard himself stated in 1998 that: `Small children deserve a
better deal than this Government seems to give them'. His words hold more truth today than they did back then," Miss
Coddington said.