“Collaborative” group meets behind closed doors

A secret meeting of some members of the ministerial cross sector education forum is being held today, without the knowledge of many of the group’s members.

The group – called the G30 - was formed in the wake of the government’s class size backdown and has been touted by education minister Hekia Parata as a way of ensuring such a disconnect with the sector did not happen again

However, PPTA has discovered a meeting is being is being held today of hand-picked members of the G-30 group, general secretary Kevin Bunker said.

“We were not meant to know about this meeting and its agenda has certainly not been shared with the rest of the group. We don’t know who will be present, but we do know that the teacher unions certainly weren’t invited,” he said.

“It shows that there are some members of the G30 group who are privy to information at a higher level than others.”
Bunker was surprised and disappointed at this move by the minister.

“It is as if she has learned nothing at all from the debacle over class size – a refusal to communicate with people is what created the whole mess in the first place.”

Bunker said meeting in secret proved that Parata’s claims to be collaborating with the sector were just window dressing.

“As a democratic organisation we generally publicise our meetings and invite input. I would have thought that was standard practice,” he said.

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