On Q+A this Sunday

On Q+A this Sunday, they are calling it the Back Down Budget. Two weeks after it announced plans for larger class sizes, National has flip-flopped and will leave class sizes as they are. Is it smart politics or humiliation for Hekia Parata? And if the government was so sure that increased spending on teachers would give more bang for our buck, is the back down really best for our kids?

Shane Taurima speaks exclusively to the education guru John Hattie, oft-quoted by John Key and Hekia Parata. What does he make of the back down?

Then, big tobacco. Plain-packaging is on the horizon and cigarettes will be banned from display next month. They’re the latest attacks on smoking, but will they work? What will the tobacco companies do to fight back? And as Australia faces a massive lawsuit by tobacco giants, are we also putting billions at risk? Philip Morris spokesman Chris Bishop is live with Greg Boyed in a rare interview on the future of smoking in New Zealand.

And finally, gay marriage is on the radar. A poll this week shows a surprisingly relaxed attitude, but could it really change? Labour MP Louisa Wall has just submitted a bill to make gay marriage legal. What’s her plan? Conservative Party leader, Colin Craig, says it’s not on and marriage is between a man and a woman. They will debate this issue live.

On the panel with Otago University’s Dr Bryce Edwards are former Labour MP and Intermediate school principal, Kelvin Davis and former ACT MP Deborah Coddington.

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