INL March 1 2019 Digital Edition
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
04<br />
MARCH 1, <strong>2019</strong><br />
Homelink<br />
Polytechnics to merge into a New Institute of Skills<br />
Education Minister Chris Hipkins<br />
(Photo for RNZ by Richard Tindiller<br />
RETAIL BUSINESS<br />
FOR SALE<br />
In a busy Retail Centre in<br />
Pukekohe<br />
Opportunity to be part of a national chain<br />
within a Cooperative group of<br />
store-owners.<br />
This business has been established for 18<br />
years and has further opportunities for<br />
growth. Suit someone wishing to be<br />
their own boss or an energetic<br />
husband/wife team.<br />
Price $150,000 plus stock<br />
Interested enquiries,<br />
Ring Peter on<br />
021-567609 or (09) 2383346<br />
The government has proposed<br />
merging all 16 polytechnics<br />
in the country into a single<br />
National Institute and radically<br />
reforming industry training<br />
organisations.<br />
Education Minister Chris Hipkins<br />
said the Plan was challenging but necessary<br />
for shoring up a sector that<br />
had suffered falling enrolments and<br />
multimillion dollar deficits.<br />
Mr Hipkins said that the proposal<br />
included creating a New Zealand<br />
Institute of Skills and Technology<br />
that would have asingle Governing<br />
Council and would manage all 16 institutes’<br />
capital and operational budgets,<br />
staffing, and computer systems<br />
for managing their courses.<br />
He said that would solve the sector’s<br />
financial problems and make<br />
better use of taxpayer funding.<br />
Consolidated Organisation<br />
“A consolidated organisation would<br />
make better strategic use of capital,<br />
achieve greater efficiency in programme<br />
design, development and<br />
delivery, and reduce replication of<br />
back-office functions,” Mr Hipkins<br />
said in a Paper to the Cabinet.<br />
The Plan also suggested stopping industry<br />
training organisations from arranging<br />
and paying for training and<br />
paring back their role to setting standards<br />
and qualifications and advising<br />
the Tertiary Education Commission<br />
under the new title of Industry Skills<br />
Bodies.<br />
Mr Hipkins said that tertiary institutions<br />
would take over the job of organising<br />
and providing work-based<br />
Proposal<br />
for Public<br />
Consultation<br />
industry training and that would be a<br />
big challenge.<br />
“Providers would take responsibility<br />
for approximately 140,000 trainees<br />
and apprentices in addition to the<br />
approximately 110,000 vocational education<br />
learners they already serve<br />
(based on 2017 figures). This would<br />
require increased capability and capacity.<br />
This change will promote better<br />
alignment between on- and off-job<br />
education and training, and stabilise<br />
provision of vocational education<br />
across the economic cycle,” the<br />
Cabinet paper said.<br />
Negative response expected<br />
The paper said industry training<br />
organisations (ITOs) might respond<br />
negatively to the proposals, but they<br />
included asignificantly increased<br />
leadership role for the industry.<br />
Mr Hipkins said that the proposed<br />
changes would be disruptive but the<br />
current model was not sustainable.<br />
He said the amalgamation of polytechnics<br />
might result in more or fewer<br />
main campuses in the regions and<br />
some of the institutes might need<br />
more financial support before the<br />
changes were implemented.<br />
Mr Hipkins’ Cabinet Paper showed<br />
the Treasury was worried that it was<br />
not clear how much the proposals<br />
would cost.<br />
“We are concerned that Cabinet is<br />
being asked to agree to asignificant<br />
in-principle decision without a clear<br />
indication of the likely overall financial<br />
implications of the changes proposed,<br />
including short-term transition<br />
costs, and enduring funding changes,”<br />
the Paper said.<br />
Last year the government loaned<br />
$50 million to Unitec and gave $15<br />
million to Whitireia in Porirua after<br />
the two institutions ran into serious<br />
financial problems. The money<br />
was on top of abailout for the West<br />
Coast’s Tai Poutini Polytechnic in<br />
February that included an $8.5 million<br />
capital injection and a write-off<br />
of $25 million owed to the Tertiary<br />
Education Commission.<br />
The Auditor-General warned in<br />
November last year that polytechnics<br />
were under pressure and needed<br />
first-rate governance.<br />
The most recently available financial<br />
results for polytechnics showed<br />
nine of the 16 institutions made deficits<br />
and 11 suffered falling enrolments<br />
in 2017.<br />
Consultation on the proposals close<br />
on <strong>March</strong> 27, <strong>2019</strong>.<br />
-Published under aSpecial<br />
Agreement with www.rnz.co.nz<br />
Additional Reading: The devil in the<br />
details of the proposed Mega-Poly<br />
under Educationlink<br />
Smart money choices made simple.<br />
We’ll help you find the sweetest mortgage deal whether it’s your first home or<br />
investment property, and arrange the best insurance to suit your needs.<br />
Mortgage services<br />
Home loans<br />
Construction loans<br />
Refinances and restructures<br />
Top ups & debt consolidation<br />
Commercial & Business loans<br />
Insurance<br />
Life, Trauma<br />
Medical/Health<br />
General<br />
Business<br />
Income Protection<br />
Call us today<br />
0800 21 22 23<br />
Level 1, 3/53 Cavendish Drive<br />
Manukau
Change language