School spending cuts criticised

Press, 27 July 1976, Page 5

School spending cuts criticised

The effects of the Government’s cuts in education spending would be felt by society as a whole for many years to come, two speakers told a meeting held in Christchurch to oppoce the spending cuts. The Opposition spokesman on education (Mr R. Marshall) and the leader of the Values Party (Mr A. M. Kunowski) said that what was saved now would be spent many times over in the future on police, prison officials and sedative drugs, among other things. The meeting in the James Hay Theatre was sponsored by several education organisations who sent eight speakers to address the meeting, along with Mr Marshall, Mr Kunowski and Mr P. Edmonds from the Social Credit Political League. About 60 people attended. An apology was received from the National Party for not sending a speaker because of the party’s conference in Rotorua. Criticising the failure of the Government to give stu-

dents an increase in bursaries, Mr Marshall said that if this continued then there soon would not be any student pro-i Tests; there would be no students able to afford to go to ' university. He said that the ones that were suffering the most because of the spending cuts I were the ones with little enough now, like country i schools. Mr Kunowski said that had the Government merely held education spending at the I same level then inflation 'would have meant that there ■ would have been an effective cut of one fifth. He criticised the Government for becoming “authoritarian.” Mr Edmonds said that if the Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) was to hold anv portfolio at all it should be eduI cation. He said the positions of Prime Minister and that of Minister of Finance should be separated. It was more important for a 'Prime Minister to have qualijfications in anthropology than I [in accountancy, Mr Edmonds said.