After pressure from the Taxpayers’ Union, Education Minister Chris Hipkins has now confirmed he will close Tuturumuri School – a taxpayer-funded school with a
roll of zero.
Last week, the Taxpayers’ Union visited Tuturumuri and made inquiries with the Minister’s office. As of Friday, Minister Hipkins was still considering
the matter. Then yesterday, just hours after the Union publicised the story, the Minister confirmed to media that he is closing the school. He apparently told staff earlier in the day.
Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke says: “This decision is a belated victory for taxpayers and common sense. The Minister has
spared himself serious embarrassment by getting this matter sorted just days after we started asking questions.”
“Important questions remain, such as how much longer the school is formally open, and how long the staff will remain on
payroll. We have asked and await answers.”
“It’s a shame that the Minister has muddied the waters by blaming ‘statutory process’ for the delays. The reason this
school has remained open so long is because the Minister made a political decision to go into consultation mode.”
“The larger story here isn’t about Tuturumuri School – it’s about how a combination of bureaucracy and political
cowardice can grind decision-making to a halt, all at the taxpayers’ expense. This sickness is deeply embedded across
the public sector.”