Ruth Richardson Replies To Nicola Anderson’s... (Press, 13 July 1987)

On 13 July 1987, Ruth Richardson, the National Party's spokesperson on education, addressed various educational and social issues in response to Nicola Anderson’s questions. Richardson argued against raising the school leaving age, citing New Zealand's low educational participation rates among 17-year-olds compared to 18 other countries surveyed by the OECD. She contended that simply passing laws would not solve the underlying problems but suggested that efforts should be focused on making the education and training systems more relevant to youth needs. Regarding the newly introduced Sixth Form Certificate system, Richardson expressed her disapproval, noting that it resulted in unfair assessments that often did not reflect students' actual performance. She pointed out that in one instance, girls in a sixth-form chemistry class had to achieve higher marks than boys for similar grades due to the flawed grading system tied to school performance at the School Certificate level. Richardson also condemned the current approach to assessment, criticising the ranking system that led to a failure label for the bottom half of the students. She proposed a shift to an achievement-based system, rewarding students for demonstrated competence rather than comparative rankings. On unemployment, Richardson stated that policies unfavourable to production would naturally result in high unemployment rates, particularly among the youth, where over 50% of the unemployed were under 24. She highlighted the need to change the current financial incentives that allowed youths to receive more while unemployed than they would in education or training. She advocated for enhancing the quality of education and training systems to encourage more young people to pursue further skills. In response to questions about military training for the unemployed, Richardson rejected the idea of punishment through compulsory military service. She believed the focus should be on providing education or training opportunities, rather than paying young people to do nothing. Richardson discussed the Goods and Services Tax (GST), suggesting her party's preference for a different approach to indirect taxation that would avoid the complexities associated with GST. She indicated the National Party's willingness to allow nuclear-powered ships into Lyttelton Harbour, adopting a similar stance as the Labour Party regarding US military aircraft. Her perspective on the curriculum review was critical, asserting that it would not lead to improvements in education. She believed it would allow for a continuation of existing problems within the education system. Richardson noted the inconsistency in the age of independence in related laws and expressed her support for aligning these ages to 18. On gender representation in Parliament, she acknowledged that women faced additional challenges but affirmed that merit should prevail over prejudice. When discussing crime, she dismissed capital punishment, urging that true improvement would come from instilling personal values and accountability, rather than merely imposing harsher laws. Richardson expressed her support for parental involvement in sex education and questioned the adequacy of bursaries for tertiary students, highlighting that the financial support provided was insufficient, particularly under the Labour government’s handling of educational finances. She noted the disparity in funding for students pursuing education versus those not engaged in any productive activities.

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