How the Scheme was Decided

In a post-Budget press statement on Saturday 23 June Mr Wellington made the following comments about how the decision to formulate and implement the Tertiary Study Grant was made.

"This is part of a continuing policy. In 1977 and 1978, Conferences were held by my Department and were attended by interested groups and organisations to consider financial assistance for Post School Study.

In April 1978 my predecessor established a Steering Committee on Financial Assistance for Post Compulsory Study which has made three interim reports to the Minister of Education. At the same time both my predecessor and I have met with student groups, teacher organisations and other interested parties and sought their views.

The new scheme announced in the Budget is an outcome of this review of the present system of assistance for tertairy students."

This claim of the Minister is a complete fabrication and is totally misleading. NZUSA has representatives on the Steering Committee and at no stage was the Tertiary Study Grant discussed and nor were its main features part of the two (not three) interim reports to the Minister. Furthermore the meetings between NZUSA and the Minister never discussed the scheme. At no stage was NZUSA invited to comment on the proposed Tertiary Study Grant.