Key called hypocrite over class sizes
Those savings [from bigger classes] will go towards improving teacher training, which the National Party argues is a more important factor in educational achievement than class size.
Key: Don’t worry about unqualified teachers
Prime Minister John Key says people should not be “hung up” on the fact that teachers without qualifications will be able to teach New Zealand children at charter schools.
Whanau Ora money used to buy drugs – police
Money from the Government’s Whanau Ora program has been used by gang members to buy cannabis for drug deals, police say.
Police documents presented to Dunedin District Court on Wednesday say the Mongrel Mob used about $20,000 of Whanau Ora money to fund a drug shipment from Auckland to the South Island in March, the Otago Daily Times reports.
Academics say SkyCity deal goes against law
John Key’s SkyCity convention centre deal made a “mockery” of the law aimed at protecting people from the ill effects of gambling, according to an article in an international academic journal.
The authors say the Prime Minister’s personal approach to SkyCity over the national convention centre was the “ultimate indicator” of the failure of the Gambling Act’s attempt to look after public health.
Long waits in Auckland’s emergency wards
Sick or injured people in Auckland are being warned they face long waits because the city’s emergency departments are under siege. They’re treating more people than ever before and many of them don’t belong there. No one likes being kept waiting, but delays are likely to get worse for emergency department patients in Auckland if the current trend continues.
Grandparents hit by benefit slashes
People who have taken in their neglected grandchildren are among the $2000-a-week beneficiaries who will be returning to work under welfare reforms, passed through Parliament this week.
Banks affair may lead to law change
Campaign finance rules for local body politicians may be tightened before next year’s elections in the fallout from the John Banks anonymous donations affair, which Prime Minister John Key said showed existing law to be “an ass”.
Struggling families borrow to buy food
Struggling families are taking short-term loans or applying to their KiwiSaver providers to withdraw their savings to buy food, despite a reported drop in food prices.
Growing pay gap between CEOs, staff
The gap between the pay of CEOs and the people they manage may be getting bigger, survey data suggest.
In BusinessDay’s second annual survey of pay rates in top listed companies, we found CEOs were paid an average 22.5 times more than their employees in the 2011 financial year, up from 21.9 times a year earlier.
Income gap between the races gets wider
New Zealand’s persistent income gap between Maori and Pacific people and the European majority has widened sharply during the recession.
OECD: One in five Kiwi kids lives in poverty
This country has one of the worst rates of poverty in the developed world according to the OECD.
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