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National has announced a $ 4.8 billion plan to spruce up the nation’s classrooms and create modern learning environments for students.
During a visit to New Plymouth Boys’ High School (NPBHS) on Monday, national leader Judith Collins said that $ 2 billion of the money would be distributed under a five-year plan called the Fix New Zealand Schools Alliance, if the party won the election. in October.
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National Party leader Judith Collins was in New Plymouth on Monday for a major policy announcement ahead of the October general election.
It would be part of a larger 10-year program, worth a total of $ 4.8 billion, that aimed to accelerate investment in educational infrastructure and stay ahead of student roster growth.
NPBHS Principal Sam Moore welcomed the news of any potential investment in school infrastructure.
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NPBHS Principal Sam Moore welcomed any policy that contemplated spending money on school infrastructure.
“All schools in New Zealand have infrastructure needs,” he said.
The $ 2 billion for the “Fix NZ Schools Alliance” would be spent over five years, through 2026, while the $ 2.8 billion growth plan would be spent over ten years, through 2031.
“Many schools need to repair leaky buildings, fortify earthquakes, address mold and moisture problems, modernize and make health and safety improvements,” Collins said.
The big announcement comes just days after the furor that followed news that $ 11.7 million would be given, through a combination of concessional loans and a grant, to expand the Green School in Oakura, a private entity. It charges annual fees ranging from $ 16,000 to $ 43,000.
The decision prompted an open letter from New Plymouth Marfell Community School Acting Principal Kealy Warren to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who strongly criticized the decision.
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Marfell Community School Acting Principal Kealy Warren was among the educators who criticized the decision to fund the expansion of a private school in Taranaki. (File photo)
Other educators in Taranaki also criticized the funding, calling it unequal.
Later, Warren sent a bill for $ 26.9 million in an attempt to get a fair investment deal for his school.
Green School’s funding comes from a pool of money for out-of-the-box initiatives as part of a $ 3 billion infrastructure investment to offset the impacts of Covid-19, rather than the education budget.
ANDY JACKSON / Stuff
National Party leader Judith Collins announced a $ 4.8 billion pledge to invest in school facilities across the country if elected.
In the wake of the Green School decision, National education spokesperson Nicola Willis added her voice to the outrage, calling it “extreme hypocrisy.”
In the aftermath, it was revealed that the project was driven by Green Party co-leader James Shaw, who had since faced backlash within his own ranks, prompting an apology and a statement that he did not. I would make the same decision again.
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National Party leader Judith Collins, in the middle, was joined by New Plymouth MP Jonathan Young, left, and Nicola Willis, the party’s education spokesperson, for the funding announcement.
In announcing National’s $ 4.8 billion repair policy, Collins said that all children should have safe, warm and modern classrooms.
The alliance would bring together builders, educators, architects and engineers to accelerate school repair work and necessary upgrades.
It would focus on streamlining remodeling work worth more than $ 100,000 over the next five years and create hundreds of jobs in the process.
ANDY JACKSON / THINGS
National Party leader Judith Collins says she has never gotten her husband to do anything she tells him to do.
Part of the plan included that contractors obtain incentives to use local subcontractors and labor as a means of stimulating local employment and business activity.
Collins was joined at NPBHS by Willis, New Plymouth MP Jonathan Young and Chris Bishop, Hutt South MP and their transportation and infrastructure spokesperson.
During their visit, the group toured the school and Collins, who was greeted with a round of applause when she first arrived, mingled and mingled with staff and students.
National’s proposed repair and redevelopment work is in conjunction with a school growth plan, which would see about 60 new schools built, along with enough classrooms to accommodate a growth of 100,000 by 2030.
Last December, the government spent $ 396 million to improve school property, resulting in a one-time cash injection for state schools, worth $ 693 per student and capped at $ 400,000.
In its 2019 Budget, it also detailed $ 1.2 billion of capital expenditures as part of the first four-year phase of a 10-year School Property Program.
