Vice-Chancellor Nic Smith, together with Te Aka Tauira Victoria University of Wellington Students’ Association President Jessica Ye, hosted the debate on the future of education in Aotearoa. Mark Jennings, co-editor of Newsroom, was the moderator.
Candidates from five political parties were challenged on a range of topics, including university funding, student costs, access to education, and how to develop skills and knowledge.
The candidates were Chris Baillie (ACT) and Penny Simmonds (National), with Teanau Tuiono (Greens), Angela Roberts (Labour), and Andy Foster (New Zealand First) standing in for Julie-Anne Genter, Jan Tinetti, and Taylor Arneil respectively.
Points of agreement were few and far between, but there was general consensus among candidates that the tertiary funding model needed fixing.
Both the major parties said they would retain the first-year fees free policy. However, opinion diverged on other financial support and how much the sector should continue to rely on international students.
Simmonds argued international students have been a large part of the financial contribution to the sector for decades and will continue to be—as well as being an important opportunity to build our global reputation. Baillie concurred, but Tuiono said COVID-19 exposed the flaws inherent in that model.
“We have treated them as a cash cow,” Tuiono said. “That needs to be sorted out, and not only that but we need to support them more.”
Tuiono was an audience favourite, with his party’s stances on a wealth tax, an income guarantee, and rent controls greeted by loud applause and cheers.
He was challenged several times by other candidates on where the money for his policies would come from.
Roberts said her party would tackle cost pressures facing students holistically.
“We need more work on allowances and student debt of course, but it’s alongside everything else. There’s no point having a student allowance if your rent is $300 and you’re sick because of where you live.”
When asked how to get more Māori and Pasifika students into tertiary education, candidates were split. Foster, Roberts, and Tuiono said fundamental reforms and increased representation were needed. Simmonds and Baillie suggested charter schools as a solution, which was greeted by a chorus of boos and groans—from both the audience and some of the other candidates.
Candidates did agree on the importance of getting today’s kids to “look beyond the football field and aspire to be future scientists and researchers”.
Foster said kids needed role models. “When you are that age you don’t know that these things exist, so we have to let them know. The All Blacks are our heroes, but our scientists should absolutely be our heroes too.”
Also featured in the debate was an online poll, where audience members could vote on the issues discussed by the candidates. The candidates agreed eight universities was about right for Aotearoa, and the audience poll showed the same. However, when asked whether te reo Māori should be compulsory in schools, candidates were divided while over 80 percent of audience voters said it should be.
There were light-hearted moments too.
Roberts likened her career as a politician as combining her two interests—economics and theatre. Tuiono compared himself to a lone kererū in the wilderness and assured the audience that he was not the father Tamatha Paul, the Green Party candidate for Wellington Central.
VUWSA president Jessica Ye thanked the candidates for attending and urged them to stand “shoulder to shoulder” with the sector.
“Education is the backbone of our society, and we cannot be used as a political football. We expect you to not just electioneer for our votes, but deliver on the commitments made here tonight.”
The debate was attended by around 250 staff, students, alumni, and stakeholders.