4 July 2008
Green MP joins students in protest
Green Party Tertiary Education Spokesperson, Metiria Turei, joined students in Auckland this morning in a march down
Queen Street against student debt and fees.
This Government has failed tertiary students and understandably they are angry, Mrs Turei says.
"The meagre tertiary concessions in the 2008 Budget were ridiculous. There are not many students celebrating the extra
five dollars a week that they were allowed to borrow. "Given the rising cost of food and fuel, the additional $5 loan
shows utter contempt," Mrs Turei says.
"Students on the march were also angry that the Government parental threshold level for eligibility for allowances was
reduced only to 24 years from 25 years. This is tantamount to saying that those aged 24 are still children and is
extremely demeaning.
"We should be investing in our future leaders and ensuring they reach their full potential, instead we seem to be making
it increasingly difficult for our young people to get the education the want and deserve, Mrs Turei says.
ENDS