Education funding in Mt Roskill schools: Who has got the “right inflation figure”?
The heat and the war of words refuse to die in the Mt Roskill by-elections as Labour and National Party candidates continue to engage in making claims and counter claims on getting the policy numbers correct.
The latest debate is on getting “right inflation figure” for calculating funding or the perceived shortfall in funding for the schools in Mt Roskill area.
The debate started yesterday when Labour candidate Michael Wood issued a call and challenged the Minister for Education to front up and discuss the Government’s plans for schools in Mt Roskill.
It was alleged by Michael Wood that “the National Government’s funding proposals mean that 21 of the 22 schools in Mt Roskill will receive less OPEX funding than they would have, had the current year's funding simply been increased for inflation. That’s extremely concerning to the local community.”
Dr Parmjeet Parmar has ignored the claim stating that “Michael Wood’s education stunt fails at simple math.”
The Labour Party is already under the microscope for getting their policy numbers correct before making big announcements.
Previously Labour Leader Andrew Little has faced the heat on the numbers provided along with his proposed “work-ready” policy.
However this time, Michael Wood’s office has chosen to hold their guns on their policy numbers stating that Dr Parmar’s press release refuting allegations of shortfall in funding for Mt Roskill schools was “incorrect.”
The argument advanced by the labour Party’s office then stated that “All we’ve done is applied the formula they’ve [National] consistently used in the past to the funding schools will receive in 2017. When that formula is applied – with a 1.5% adjustment to account for forecast inflation (as per the BEFU in Budget 2016) – we can demonstrate that 21 of the 22 schools in Mt Roskill will receive less funding than they would have under the previous funding model. In other words, those schools will be worse off.”
This morning Dr Parmar’s office has again hit back on Michael Wood claiming that “Mr Woods has consistently demonstrated his inability to understand how school funding works.”
In a response attributed to Dr Parmar, it is stated that “collectively schools receive $1.35b in operations grants. On top of this, 99.4% of all schools will receive an additional $12.3m to target students most at risk of underachieving.
Every school in Mt Roskill will receive a share of this new money. How much money each school receives will be based on how many students it has who meet the criteria. In the case of the school of which Mr Wood is the Board Chair, it will receive a 1.25% funding increase.”
Although this explanation is a rebuttal of Michael Wood’s allegations on short funding in Mt Roskill schools, yet it does not categorically state the accurate inflation figure that National government is using to calculate these numbers.
It is high time that general public and the community is apprised about the accurate inflation figure that has become a source war of words between the Nationals and the Labours.
What is the accurate inflation figure and who has got it right in calculating funding for the Mt Roskill schools is the question that needs a clear answer, preferably sooner, than later.
The heat and the war of words refuse to die in the Mt Roskill by-elections as Labour and National Party candidates continue to engage in making claims and counter claims on getting the policy numbers correct.
The latest debate is on getting “right inflation figure” for calculating funding or the...
The heat and the war of words refuse to die in the Mt Roskill by-elections as Labour and National Party candidates continue to engage in making claims and counter claims on getting the policy numbers correct.
The latest debate is on getting “right inflation figure” for calculating funding or the perceived shortfall in funding for the schools in Mt Roskill area.
The debate started yesterday when Labour candidate Michael Wood issued a call and challenged the Minister for Education to front up and discuss the Government’s plans for schools in Mt Roskill.
It was alleged by Michael Wood that “the National Government’s funding proposals mean that 21 of the 22 schools in Mt Roskill will receive less OPEX funding than they would have, had the current year's funding simply been increased for inflation. That’s extremely concerning to the local community.”
Dr Parmjeet Parmar has ignored the claim stating that “Michael Wood’s education stunt fails at simple math.”
The Labour Party is already under the microscope for getting their policy numbers correct before making big announcements.
Previously Labour Leader Andrew Little has faced the heat on the numbers provided along with his proposed “work-ready” policy.
However this time, Michael Wood’s office has chosen to hold their guns on their policy numbers stating that Dr Parmar’s press release refuting allegations of shortfall in funding for Mt Roskill schools was “incorrect.”
The argument advanced by the labour Party’s office then stated that “All we’ve done is applied the formula they’ve [National] consistently used in the past to the funding schools will receive in 2017. When that formula is applied – with a 1.5% adjustment to account for forecast inflation (as per the BEFU in Budget 2016) – we can demonstrate that 21 of the 22 schools in Mt Roskill will receive less funding than they would have under the previous funding model. In other words, those schools will be worse off.”
This morning Dr Parmar’s office has again hit back on Michael Wood claiming that “Mr Woods has consistently demonstrated his inability to understand how school funding works.”
In a response attributed to Dr Parmar, it is stated that “collectively schools receive $1.35b in operations grants. On top of this, 99.4% of all schools will receive an additional $12.3m to target students most at risk of underachieving.
Every school in Mt Roskill will receive a share of this new money. How much money each school receives will be based on how many students it has who meet the criteria. In the case of the school of which Mr Wood is the Board Chair, it will receive a 1.25% funding increase.”
Although this explanation is a rebuttal of Michael Wood’s allegations on short funding in Mt Roskill schools, yet it does not categorically state the accurate inflation figure that National government is using to calculate these numbers.
It is high time that general public and the community is apprised about the accurate inflation figure that has become a source war of words between the Nationals and the Labours.
What is the accurate inflation figure and who has got it right in calculating funding for the Mt Roskill schools is the question that needs a clear answer, preferably sooner, than later.
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