Penny Simmonds: Tertiary Education and Skills Minister on the Government's plans to replace Te Pukenga

The Government's consulting on a new model to replace Te Pukenga.  

The mega-polytech has been running at a large deficit and enrolments have declined.  

They’re proposing institutes with a pathway to financial sustainability that will stand alone while others will be grouped together in a federation, supported by Open Polytechnic.  

Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds told Mike Hosking a lot of what they're looking at is advice the previous minister was given.  

She says that was not to go wholesale into a big change, but to address problem areas, and let the others get on with running their polytechnics. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
There's a business of education, more change coming longer. Way
to consultation for polytexs is now open. In simple terms,
we want to take the struggle well, the struggling texts,
group them together, let the successful one stand alone. Penny
Simmons is the tertiary minister in chargeable with this, and
she's with us very good morning.

Speaker 2 (00:15):
Yes, good morning mate.

Speaker 1 (00:16):
This readjig you're looking at is what should have been
done in the first place. And given it you're from
South London, you were running a moderately successful operation. You
would have known that, wouldn't you.

Speaker 2 (00:25):
Yes, And look this should have happened four years ago
and a lot of what we're looking at doing now
is advice that the previous minister was given not to
go wholesale into a big change, but to address the
problem areas and let the other ones get on with
running their polytechnics.

Speaker 1 (00:42):
Now is when you put these in correct me if
I'm wrong in saying this year your group of the
strugglers together, let the successful ones get on with it.
Are there too many people in the sector? In other words,
and grouping strugglers together are you asking for trouble?

Speaker 2 (00:55):
Look, we can't group them together until we get the
costs out, So that's the exercise we're going through. Now,
there's significant cost that has to come out. There's identified
one hundred and thirty million dollars worth of building and
land that isn't being used that needs to be sold.
There is poor operating practice that needs to be sorted.
So we've got to get the costs out first, or

(01:17):
else we'll just be pouring water into a sieve.

Speaker 1 (01:19):
So the costs are the waste and the fat. So
you're confident it's not to the bone and therefore it's
not worth the exercise.

Speaker 2 (01:29):
Look, some of it is to the bone, and those
very small places the far north, New Plymouth, west coast
of the South Island, and that's why we need them
definitely in a federation so they can get access to
the one hundred and sixty programs that the Open Polytechnic
has got online, so they can then offer a blended
delivery of on campus and online, so that gives them

(01:52):
the support to still be able to run courses. But
in some of the bigger urban areas where there are
big deficits being we have to get costs out of there.

Speaker 1 (02:02):
Okay, the criticism, I have some simpathy for despite the
fact that what you're doing makes sense. Is this too
much change on top of change?

Speaker 2 (02:11):
Well, we in status quo isn't an option. They're going
to run out of money. They are running big deficits
and they will run out of money churning through reserves.
We haven't got an option to just leave them.

Speaker 1 (02:22):
How many courses are there, how many politics are there
that when you look at it from the outside and
you go, you know what, there's too much frippery going
on and we're just wasting time and money here.

Speaker 2 (02:33):
Yeah. Look, I think industry involvement is key to this,
and community involvement's key to it. So yes, there will
be some of that. But remember you use polytechnics as
a pathway to employment. It's not education for education sake.
It's the year to get people into employment. So that's
why we've got to get industry and communities involved with

(02:54):
in the game.

Speaker 1 (02:55):
I watch you in question time. You're feeling the heat.
Labor have got you in their sites along with Stello,
along with Chure. Are you feeling the heat?

Speaker 2 (03:04):
Well, look, no I'm not because I know that we've
got to do this and we've got to get it right.
So yeah, They're going to put me under pressure. That's
what I'm there.

Speaker 1 (03:13):
For, all right, Go well, Penny Simmons, who's the Tertiary
and Education of Skills Medicine. For more from the Mic
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