Green Party Tertiary Education Spokesperson Chlöe Swarbrick has launched a petition calling for immediate, meaningful support for students, saying the Government’s announced boost to the student hardship funds doesn’t go far enough.

Today the student accommodation inquiry initiated by Green Party Tertiary Education spokesperson Chlöe Swarbrick tabled its report in Parliament.

The Green Party is disappointed with the Labour Party’s decision to reverse their three free years education policy and back down on their commitment to postgraduate student allowances. 

The Green Party is calling for a Guaranteed Minimum Income to be implemented after the election to help students not captured by the wage subsidy scheme.

A flourishing tertiary education sector is well-resourced, innovative, responsive, and accessible to students. Its institutions reflect the diversity of Aotearoa and champion mātauranga Māori. Aotearoa’s tertiary education institutions have been compromised by decades of corporate behaviour that has prioritised profit over education as a public good. Successive governments have systematically devalued education and its critical contribution to the vibrancy and progress of our communities. Those who teach and research at Aotearoa’s tertiary institutions are often not recognised for the work...

The Green Party has begun the process for a Select Committee inquiry into student accommodation, which has been exposed during COVID-19 as an under-regulated sector that straddles students with unfair debt.

Click here for our 2020 Election Priorities for Tertiary Education Supporting students creates a fairer society and a stronger economy. Tertiary education can help drive the transition to a sustainable Aotearoa New Zealand. Tertiary education should be free Student fees should be capped and progressively reduced. The EFTS and PBRF funding models should be reviewed to ensure universities are adequately funded and incentivised to cooperate rather than compete. Funding should improve staff to student ratios, library resources, and staff retention....

Young people should be empowered to create a better Aotearoa New Zealand and overcome the challenges created by previous generations. Democracy must include young people Young people should have representation or a voice on local and community boards. The Local Government Act should require councils to resource Youth Councils and employ child and youth advocates. Civics, human rights, and environmental education should be taught in schools. The health system should meet the needs of young people Improving youth mental health...

The Green Party announced today that, in government, it will provide genuine support for students by bringing in a universal post-graduate student allowance and increasing allowance rates for all students. “The rise in the cost of living and higher rents are making life increasingly hard for students, and the Green Party has a plan to fix that,” said Green Party leader James Shaw. “We will create a universal allowance for all post-graduate students and increase the base student allowance rate...