Posted by Blogger Name. Category:
Chris Hipkins
,
David Cunliffe
,
Education
,
Free laptops and iPads
,
Labour Party
,
Pork barrel politics
,
Trevor Mallard
Labour has gone all-out on Education policy this week. David Cunliffe and Chris Hipkins have rolled out a number of policy initiatives, which doubtless have been developed in partnership with teacher unions.
After accusing National of "pork-barrel politics" last weekend over the roading announcements, Labour has gone all porcine itself this week. It's tossed out $50 million for school donations, $70 million for laptops and iPads for students, and a plan to spend "hundreds of millions of dollars a year" replacing aging school buildings. We would have thought that happened anyway, but there you go!
Stuff has surveyed its readers on the laptops and iPads plan, and Labour won't like the result:
More than three quarters of respondents describe this as a "hollow election promise", and it's hard to disagree. Who is going to ensure the taxpayer-funded technology is used for its intended purpose? Who is going to meet the cost of replacing lost, damaged or stolen items? And who's going to monitor TradeMe to ensure that losses are genuine?
Labour's policy is well-intentioned, but as with other policies the party has announced, poorly thought out. In fact it seems Trevor Mallard has put more research into his unofficial policy of de-extinction for the moa than has gone into this policy.
Still; the polls could have been worse; they could have been as one-sided as this one:
