Press Release
Stephen Berry
Education
Take State Money? Accept National Standards!
“If schools want the money the state provides for education then it is only reasonable that they accept the rules that
come with it,’ says Independent candidate for Tamaki, Stephen Berry. His comments come in response to complaints from
some schools that they are being bullied by the Ministry of Education.
“It is not bullying to expect a return on your investment. If the Government is going to invest billions of dollars in
schools, they should expect to see results from this investment and have an objective way in which to measure them. The
expectation that anyone should be able to take substantial amounts of other people’s money and not be held accountable
for what they do with it is a typical absurdity that infects the public service.”
Stephen Berry believes the spectre of teacher unions has a lot to answer for in the debate over National Standards.
“Teacher unions are not interested in the quality of education. They are not interested in rewarding good teachers or
having bad teachers be held accountable for their performance. Teacher unions are only interested in maintaining a
paying membership, not the education of children.”
“The people who benefit most from union membership are the lazy and incompetent. The ambitious, self-motivated and those
who go the extra mile gain nothing from an organisation dedicated to the defence of mediocrity.”
Mr. Berry argues that the principles of liberty can be the real solution in this battle. “I think the Government should
give schools the option to opt out of the National Standards system, but only if they also opt out of receiving a cent
from the state. Schools that resist being held accountable for the money they get should privatise themselves and
compete on the open market. Any parents who advocate spending money on something without getting a measure of return can
pay to send their children there.”
Stephen Berry advocates the eventual privatisation of all educational facilities. As a transitional measure he believes
the Government should issue vouchers to parents to use at any school they wish. After 2022, parents will be solely
responsible for their own children’s education.
ENDS