‘Education affected by pressure groups’

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32653, 8 July 1971, Page 3

‘Education affected by pressure groups’

(New Zealand Press Association) * r " <• PALMERSTON NORTH, July 7. Education suffered greatly from the activities of pressure groups—for one thing there were too many of them—said the Minister of Finance (Mr Muldoon) in Palmerston North today.

Mr Muldoon was addressing a Palmerston North Teachers’ College combined assembly.

The various teacher associations, school committees and their associations, P.T.A.S and their associations, student associations and education board associations each did a worth-while job, taken one by one, said Mr Muldoon. “Unfortunately in a country which is so bedevilled by pressure groups as New Zealand, there is always some eager press man who will wangle an extravagant and inflammatory statement out of the chairman of the Waipapakauri school committee and give it headlines in every newspaper in the country.

. “The fact that local sensa- ( Cions are reported simul- , taneousiy in every part of the ' country is an unusual, feature of the New Zealand news media which is not found in ; other countries. It makes 5 it easy for people like myself 5 to get my message spread to ' the population as a whole, ' but equally it encourages and exaggerates the activities of 1 pressure groups,” Mr Mul- - doon said. ’ PUBLIC CHANGE • The controversial pressure > group type of activity in re--1 cent years had done a great 1 deal of harm by causing an adverse change in the public attitude towards education. “The taxpayer today is well aware of the vast sums of money that he has to find for the education system and < even if he does not begrudge < it, he expects value for it and he expects it to be wisely | spent. i *T am very sure that many taxpayers do not think that it is afi being wisely spent, . do not think that they are getting full value for it, and in some cases actually begrudge ■ paying for it. “I believe that the great bulk of our education spending is wisely spent for good value,” Mr Muldoon said. Next year, or the year after, New Zealand would spend a million dollars a day on education, or a little over $2 a week for every man, woman and child in the country.

“It is, our estimate of the value of education to New Zealand and, put simply, we rate’ its value highly.

“This does not, and it must not, stop me of any other member of Parliament from criticising what we see to be wastage or misdirected use of resources,” Mr Muldoon said.

WRONG USES It would be wrong to have an education system that was totally functional. “Some countries, Russia and Japan are two, tend Sf towards that apbut I believe it would not be acceptable in New Zealand. “it is much more wrong deliberately to turn out graduates who have no chance of future employment or even continuing interest in the field in which they have graduated," Mr Muldoon said.