Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce is defending moves to redirect government funding from industry training to universities, saying achievement levels have been poor.Following a review of industry training organisations, the Tertiary Education Commi
Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce is defending moves to redirect government funding from industry training to universities, saying achievement levels have been poor.
Following a review of industry training organisations, the Tertiary Education Commission last year began work aimed at improving their educational and financial performance, including putting funding caps on trainees and more emphasis on monitoring achievement progress.
The commission identified large projected under-spending, and Mr Joyce announced a few weeks ago that the Government would redirect $55 million from that sector to fund more university student places.
New Zealand Manufacturers and Exporters Association chief executive John Walley said in The New Zealand Herald this morning the move would damage the country's economic productivity.
While there was a downturn in industry training with the recession, that trend was likely to reverse over the next few years and cause difficulties, he said.
Mr Joyce was asked by Labour's tertiary education spokesman Grant Robertson in Parliament today about the potential disadvantages that the withdrawal of funding might cause to the training sector and the economy.
Mr Joyce said there was a drive by the Government to make effective use of limited funds.
"That money is now being used to fund almost 3000 more full-time student places with little - if any - effect on industry training, because the funding was under-utilised, or in some cases not being utilised at all."
He said about 100,000 of the registered trainees in New Zealand got no credits in 2009, and it was the same in 2008. About 44,000 got no credits during both years, he said.
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