# Question 102: I'm a Māori parent in a working household. I want to compare household costs and local services, and I also care about Te Tiriti and Māori participation in decisions. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. How do parties compare on Māori-medium education, te reo Māori and support for children at school?

Collected 2 November 2026

[NZ Election 2026 · Edition 8 study](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/8)

## ChatGPT

Answer ID: a55cf1ba-4b49-47bb-b2ce-9a2079b3c16f

# 2026 New Zealand election: Māori education, te reo Māori and support for tamariki

For a whānau balancing work, household expenses and the future of their children, education policy is about more than school funding. It also concerns whether tamariki can learn in te reo Māori, whether Māori-medium pathways are properly supported, and whether Māori whānau have a meaningful voice in decisions affecting their children.

There are three important areas to compare:

1. Māori-medium education: access to kōhanga reo, kura kaupapa Māori, wharekura and pathways into further education.
2. Te reo Māori: funding, teacher supply, curriculum, language revitalisation and the status of te reo in public education.
3. Support for children at school: learning support, teacher numbers, attendance, school costs, lunches, wellbeing and additional help for children who need it.

One important distinction for the 2026 election: a party's historical record, its current government decisions and its promises for the next parliamentary term are not necessarily the same. I'll distinguish these rather than treating older policies as new election commitments.

## 1. How the parties compare

The following comparison covers the main parliamentary parties and their documented 2026 commitments. It is not a ranking: it shows where their approaches differ.

Information checked against 2026 election policy material available on 1 November 2026.

### Te Pāti Māori

Māori-led education and governance focus

- Māori-medium education: Supports Māori-led education solutions and strengthening Māori governance.
- Te reo Māori: Proposes making te reo Māori a core subject through to Year 10 and embedding mātauranga Māori in learning.
- Children's support: Supports expanding school lunches, free public transport for students and free school counselling.
- Māori participation: Explicitly supports Māori decision-making and governance in education.

Its published education commitments are particularly relevant to whānau wanting Māori authority over education decisions, rather than simply more Māori content within a Crown-designed system. [Education & Training](https://www.maoriparty.org.nz/education_training)[Te Pāti Māori: policies and record 2026](https://partymap.co.nz/parties/te-pati-maori/)

### Green Party

Te reo investment and broader child support

- Māori-medium education: Supports Māori language revitalisation and Māori educational inclusion.
- Te reo Māori: Has proposed $50 million annually for te reo Māori initiatives.
- Children's support: Proposes restoring and extending Ka Ora, Ka Ako school lunches to another 400 schools.
- Workforce: Proposes universal trainee payments for students training to become teachers and other essential workers.

The Green approach combines language investment with practical assistance for children and families. [Election policy tracker: what the parties are promising](https://stories.theconversation.com/nz-policy-tracker-2026/)

### Labour Party

Classroom assistance and household costs

- Māori-medium education: Its historical record includes investment in Māori education, but its current 2026 announcements need to be distinguished from previous government programmes.
- Te reo Māori: Its current headline education announcements do not set out a comparable new dedicated te reo funding commitment.
- Children's support: Promises 1,000 additional teacher aides, backed by $80 million over four years.
- School costs: Promises locally made healthy school lunches from Term 1 2028, cheaper uniforms and restored rural school buses.

For a working household, the teacher-aide proposal is worth examining if a child needs additional classroom attention. Labour also has a separate Māori employment and skills programme. [Labour's 2026 Election Policies](https://www.labour.org.nz/policy)[Release: Labour to provide more help in the classroom](https://www.labour.org.nz/news/release-labour-to-provide-more-help-in-the-classroom/)[Election policy tracker: what the parties are promising](https://stories.theconversation.com/nz-policy-tracker-2026/)

### National Party

Achievement, attendance and structured learning

- Māori-medium education: The Government has funded some Māori-medium expansion and workforce development, although it has also reprioritised existing Māori education funding.
- Te reo Māori: Budget 2025 included teacher te reo and tikanga training and Māori-medium resources.
- Children's support: Promises Learning Support Coordinators for all schools with Year 1–8 students from 2028, additional teacher-aide hours and expanded early intervention.
- School policy: Emphasises literacy, numeracy, assessment, attendance and a revised secondary qualification system.

An important distinction is that National's current Government has made specific investments in Māori education, but has also changed the legal obligations on school boards concerning Te Tiriti. [Teaching the basics brilliantly](https://www.national.org.nz/policies/education-teaching-the-basics-brilliantly)[Māori education](https://www.education.govt.nz/our-work/publications/corporate-documents/budget-2025/maori-education)[Education and Training Amendment Act 2025](https://www.education.govt.nz/our-work/information-releases/issue-specific-information-releases/education-and-training-amendment-bill-no-2)

### ACT New Zealand

- Māori-medium education: Its current education messaging emphasises parental choice and the wider academic curriculum rather than a distinct Māori-led education system.
- Te reo Māori: ACT's position in the October 2026 Māori candidates' debate was that learning te reo should remain a choice rather than become compulsory.
- Children's support: Its education proposals include more affordable school uniforms and changes to classroom discipline.
- Māori participation: Its approach to Treaty interpretation and the role of Treaty institutions differs substantially from parties advocating stronger Māori governance.

The distinction here is between supporting individual choice to learn te reo and making language revitalisation a broader education-system priority. [Te reo splits the parties as kōhanga reo wait for an answer](https://press.nz/maori-medium-education-election-pledges)[Election policy tracker: what the parties are promising](https://stories.theconversation.com/nz-policy-tracker-2026/)[Policies for Party vote - NZ Election 2026](https://policy.nz/2026/party-vote/policies/te-ao-maori)

### New Zealand First

- Māori-medium education: The available 2026 education policy summaries do not establish a comparable new Māori-medium expansion commitment.
- Te reo Māori: Its approach should be assessed alongside its wider position on Treaty institutions and Māori political representation.
- Children's support: Its education commitments should be checked against its full party manifesto; the available summaries do not establish a specific comparable learning-support package.
- Māori participation: The party has supported abolishing the Waitangi Tribunal once historical claims are resolved.

That last proposal is relevant if you consider the Treaty settlement and accountability system part of Māori participation in decisions. [Te reo splits the parties as kōhanga reo wait for an answer](https://press.nz/maori-medium-education-election-pledges)[Election policy tracker: what the parties are promising](https://stories.theconversation.com/nz-policy-tracker-2026/)[Policies for Party vote - NZ Election 2026](https://policy.nz/2026/party-vote/policies/te-ao-maori)

## 2. What is actually happening in Māori education?

It helps to look beyond promises and examine the current situation.

Māori-medium education in 2025

# 28,382

Students in Māori-medium education

# 3.3%

Of the total school population

# 362

Schools with Māori-medium students

# 95.7%

Of Māori-medium students identifying as Māori

Source: Ministry of Education, July 2025 statistics. [Māori language in schooling](https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/statistics/maori-language-in-schooling)

This shows that Māori-medium education is growing, but remains a relatively small part of the overall school system.

There is also a significant difference between Māori-medium education and learning te reo as a subject in an English-medium school.

For example, in July 2025:

- 28,382 students were in Māori-medium education.
- 266,199 students were involved in Māori-language education in English-medium schools.
- 65.6% of all school students were not involved in Māori-language education.

[Māori language in schooling](https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/statistics/maori-language-in-schooling)

### What has National's Government funded?

Budget 2025 included:

| Investment | Amount |
| --- | --- |
| Te reo and tikanga training for teachers | $14.7m |
| Online STEM learning for Māori-medium education | $10m |
| Wharekura learning resources | $4.5m |
| Māori-medium curriculum advisers | $4.8m |
| Māori Studies subject development | $2.1m |
| Additional Māori-medium classrooms | Up to $50m capital |

These are meaningful allocations, but there is an important qualification: some of the funding was obtained by reprioritising existing Māori education resources.

In particular, the Government discontinued 53 Resource Teacher: Māori positions and the Wharekura Expert Teachers Programme as part of that reprioritisation. [Māori education](https://www.education.govt.nz/our-work/publications/corporate-documents/budget-2025/maori-education)

This gives you two different things to consider: the new investments and what existing support was removed to fund them.

## 3. Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Māori participation in school decisions

This is an important difference between the parties, because education policy is not just about what happens in the classroom. It is also about who has authority to decide what children learn and how schools respond to Māori communities.

One significant change has already happened.

The Education and Training Amendment Act 2025:

- Removed the explicit requirement for school boards to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
- Made educational achievement the highest-priority objective for school boards.
- Retained requirements to seek equitable outcomes for Māori students.
- Requires reasonable steps to provide teaching and learning in te reo Māori when requested by parents or caregivers.
- Requires reasonable steps to reflect New Zealand's cultural diversity in school policies and practices.

[Education and Training Amendment Act 2025](https://www.education.govt.nz/our-work/information-releases/issue-specific-information-releases/education-and-training-amendment-bill-no-2)

Here is the broad distinction between the approaches:

| Party | General approach to Māori participation |
| --- | --- |
| Te Pāti Māori | Māori-led education authority and stronger Māori governance |
| Greens | Te Tiriti, Māori inclusion and language revitalisation |
| Labour | Partnership and Māori participation, with current commitments to be assessed individually |
| National | Equity for Māori learners within a national education framework |
| ACT | Individual choice and a more restrictive approach to Treaty obligations |
| NZ First | Supports changes to Treaty institutions, including abolishing the Waitangi Tribunal after historical claims are resolved |

These are differences in policy direction, not a measure of how effectively each party would implement its proposals.

## 4. What matters for your household financially?

As a working parent, there are some practical differences worth considering alongside cultural and educational policy.

| Household concern | Policies worth examining |
| --- | --- |
| School lunches | Greens, Te Pāti Māori and Labour |
| Learning difficulties or additional needs | Labour's 1,000 extra teacher aides; National's Learning Support Coordinators |
| Uniform costs | Labour and ACT |
| School transport | Labour's rural bus proposal; Te Pāti Māori's free student transport |
| Māori-medium school access | Te Pāti Māori's Māori-led education proposals and National's existing classroom investment |
| Teacher capability in te reo | National's existing teacher training investment; Greens' proposed language funding |
| Whānau involvement in decisions | Particularly relevant to Te Pāti Māori and Green proposals |

One thing I would pay particular attention to is whether a policy is funded and when it starts. A promise to restore lunches in 2028, for example, does not reduce your grocery bill this year.

## 5. Questions worth asking candidates before voting

These questions can help distinguish a broad political promise from something that would make a tangible difference to your whānau.

1. Māori-medium access: How many additional kōhanga reo, kura kaupapa and wharekura will you fund, and where?
2. Kaiako: What will you do about the shortage of qualified Māori-speaking teachers?
3. Te reo Māori: Will you fund language revitalisation as a long-term commitment, rather than a short-term programme?
4. Learning support: How quickly can a child with additional learning needs access a specialist or teacher aide?
5. School affordability: What will you do to reduce the costs of lunches, uniforms, stationery and transport?
6. Te Tiriti: Will you restore or strengthen Treaty obligations in education legislation?
7. Māori decision-making: Will iwi, hapū, Māori education providers and whānau have actual decision-making authority, or will they simply be consulted?

These questions also help reveal whether a party has measurable commitments, a delivery timetable and an identified budget.

## 6. My suggested sources for checking the manifestos

These are useful places to check the original policies rather than relying only on campaign advertising.

- [Policy.nz – 2026 party policy comparison](https://policy.nz/2026/party-vote/policies/te-ao-maori?utm_source=chatgpt.com)
- [The Conversation – 2026 election policy tracker](https://stories.theconversation.com/nz-policy-tracker-2026/?utm_source=chatgpt.com)
- [Ministry of Education – Māori Education Budget 2025](https://www.education.govt.nz/our-work/publications/corporate-documents/budget-2025/maori-education?utm_source=chatgpt.com)
- [Education Counts – Māori language in schooling](https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/statistics/maori-language-in-schooling?utm_source=chatgpt.com)
- [Te Pāti Māori – Education and Training](https://www.maoriparty.org.nz/education_training?utm_source=chatgpt.com)

## 7. A useful way to assess your decision

I would keep three separate measures when comparing parties:

- Cultural and educational aspirations: Does the party support te reo Māori, mātauranga Māori and strong Māori-medium pathways?
- Practical outcomes for tamariki: Will it provide teachers, learning support, meals, transport and affordable schooling?
- Māori authority: Does it support meaningful Māori participation and decision-making under Te Tiriti?

A party can support better classroom achievement without supporting Māori educational autonomy. Equally, a party can make strong commitments to Māori governance without yet demonstrating how it will deliver the classroom workforce and resources needed.

It is worth examining all three rather than assuming one automatically delivers the others.

One further comparison could be especially useful: how the parties' policies affect Māori working households through wages, tax, housing, healthcare, childcare and everyday living costs.

You can also explore these next:

Compare household costs

Wages, tax, groceries, housing and transport

Compare Te Tiriti commitments

Māori representation, governance and tino rangatiratanga

---

Worked for 17s

Searching the web

Searching the web

Searching the web

Searched 10 websites

## Gemini

Answer ID: 64913345-3da7-4f3d-b41e-3c5e9b771d73

Navigating the 2026 general election as a working Māori parent involves weighing how different political parties approach economic pressures, local community resourcing, and—crucially—Te Tiriti o Waitangi, self-determination (*tino rangatiratanga*), and the educational success of our *tamariki*. 

Political parties present distinct philosophies on Māori-medium education, te reo Māori, and student support. Broadly, they can be grouped by how they approach Māori-led authority versus mainstream-focused administration.

---

### 1. Māori-Led Authority and Te Tiriti-Centric Governance
* **Te Pāti Māori:** 
  * **The Stance:** Strongly rooted in *tino rangatiratanga* and Te Tiriti o Waitangi. They argue that the mainstream education system has historically failed to let tamariki Māori "bring their whole selves" to school.
  * **Key Policies:** Their flagship education policy focuses on establishing an independent **Māori Education Authority** to return decision-making, governance, and design directly to Māori communities. They also advocate for making te reo Māori a core subject up to Year 10, embedding *mātauranga Māori* across learning, and expanding universal student supports like free school lunches, free in-school counselling, and free public transport.
* **Green Party:** 
  * **The Stance:** Aligns closely with kaupapa Māori solutions and co-governance principles in public services.
  * **Key Policies:** Focuses on securing long-term, stable funding for kaupapa Māori and Māori-led early childhood and schooling providers, properly embedding *mātauranga Māori* in the curriculum, and removing administrative barriers that block whānau from engaging fully in education and training.

### 2. Centre-Left Approach (Labour and Allies)
* **Labour Party:** 
  * **The Stance:** Generally favors strengthening provisions within the state system alongside targeted support for Kura Kaupapa Māori and immersion pathways, emphasizing equity for working-class and Māori households.
  * **Key Policies:** Historically champions state-backed equity measures in schools (such as the school lunch programme and targeted learning supports). Their approach focuses on resourcing te reo Māori and *mātauranga Māori* integration within the existing national curriculum framework, while supporting growth in Māori-medium education infrastructure through the Ministry of Education.

### 3. Centre-Right and Right-Leaning Approach (National, ACT, NZ First)
* **National Party:** 
  * **The Stance:** Focuses primarily on standard academic achievement ("the basics" like reading, writing, and math), standardized testing milestones, and structured English-medium transitions, while supporting parental choice.
  * **Key Policies:** Rather than systemic structural changes or separate Māori authorities, National emphasizes accountability through regular student progress reporting and structured literacy/numeracy. While they support existing kura and bilingual pathways, their general policy architecture leans toward universal educational standards and standardized assessments (such as early school-start checks and milestone tracking) rather than race-based or separate governance bodies.
* **ACT & NZ First:** 
  * **The Stance:** Strongly oppose race-based or co-governance models across public sectors, arguing for universal public service delivery without structural separation. 
  * **Key Policies:** Generally emphasize a streamlined, English-medium core curriculum focusing on academic basics. They tend to look skeptically on dedicated Māori authorities or policies that emphasize separate institutional governance, preferring mainstream integration or market-based choice (such as charter/partnership schools where community groups—including iwi or trusts—can run state-funded schools).

---

### Summary Comparison for a Working Māori Parent

| Priority Area | Te Pāti Māori / Greens | Labour | National / ACT / NZ First |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| **Governance & Te Tiriti** | **High Autonomy:** Independent Māori Education Authority and Māori-led decision-making. | **State Partnership:** Working within public systems alongside targeted Māori Crown partnerships. | **Universal/Mainstream:** Resistance to separate authorities; focus on equal treatment and standard state administration. |
| **Te Reo & Mātauranga** | **Mandatory Integration:** Te reo core subject to Year 10; deep embedding of *mātauranga Māori*. | **Curriculum Integration:** Expanding resources and support for teachers to include te reo within mainstream and immersion settings. | **Parental Choice / Basics:** Support for bilingual units where demanded, but primary policy focus remains on core academic basics (English, math). |
| **Child & Whānau Support** | **Universal Pro-Equity:** Free in-school lunches, counselling, and transport to ease household cost-of-living pressures. | **Targeted Equity:** Funding tied to equity indexes, backing nutrition and social services in lower-decile/high-need schools. | **Targeted Interventions:** Focus on attendance tracking, structured disciplinary measures, and direct learning supports (e.g., structured literacy). |

As you weigh your vote, consider whether you prefer a party that promises structural self-determination through a dedicated **Māori Education Authority**, or a party focusing on household cost-of-living relief within the mainstream system, or standard academic performance metrics.

---

Would you like to explore how these parties' economic or cost-of-living policies align with supporting working households alongside these educational goals?

## Google AI Mode

Answer ID: 36176255-fde3-4f06-91a6-b52717e2b429

When considering your vote in the 2026 New Zealand General Election, weighing party approaches to Māori-medium education, _te reo Māori_ , and support for tamariki involves looking at distinct political philosophies around self-determination (_tino rangatiratanga_), public service delivery, and the Crown's obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

The major political parties generally fall into distinct approaches regarding Māori education, language revitalisation, and decision-making participation:

1\. Te Pāti Māori (Māori Party)

 * **Māori-Medium Education & Te Reo:** Advocates strongly for systemic transformation through _tino rangatiratanga_. They push for an independent Māori Education Authority (_Motuhake_) to design and control education delivery for tamariki Māori, moving away from state-run central bureaucracy. They view _te reo Māori_ as a taonga that should be freely accessible, integrated, and prioritized across all levels of public education.

 * **Te Tiriti & Decision-Making:** Centers Te Tiriti o Waitangi as the foundational constitutional document of Aotearoa. They support co-governance and absolute Māori participation and decision-making authority in public services rather than mere consultation.

 * **Support for Children/Household Focus:** Generally advocates for wraparound social supports embedded within communities (such as free school lunches and health services in schools), targeting working-class and low-income whānau through systemic redistribution and welfare reform.

2\. The Green Party

 * **Māori-Medium Education & Te Reo:** Supports the expansion of kura kaupapa Māori, wharekura, and early childhood education (_Te Kohanga Reo_). They emphasize funding parity for Māori-medium pathways and the integration of _te reo Māori_ and local _tikanga_ as core components of the national curriculum rather than optional extras.

 * **Te Tiriti & Decision-Making:** Strongly committed to upholding Te Tiriti o Waitangi, incorporating indigenous rights into legislation, and supporting Māori-led solutions for Māori issues. They advocate for shared decision-making structures across environmental, social, and educational governance.

 * **Support for Children/Household Focus:** Strongly focuses on alleviating household cost-of-living pressures through universal or targeted services—such as advocating for free healthy school lunches, expanding mental health support in schools, and reducing poverty through income support policies aimed at working households.

3\. New Zealand Labour Party

 * **Māori-Medium Education & Te Reo:** Historically supports the growth and resourcing of kura kaupapa and immersion education, though often within a state-regulated framework. During previous terms in government, they backed initiatives like _Te Takanga o Te Wā_ (local histories) and curriculum developments that incorporate _mātauranga Māori_.

 * **Te Tiriti & Decision-Making:** Views Te Tiriti as an ongoing partnership framework. They generally support Crown engagement and partnership with iwi/hapū in public policy and service design, though their approach is more moderate and institutional compared to Te Pāti Māori or the Greens.

 * **Support for Children/Household Focus:** Emphasizes state-funded public provisions to ease household budgets, such as supporting the nationwide school lunch program, cost-of-living assistance, and working for equity in mainstream schooling to support lower-income families.

4\. New Zealand National Party (and Coalition Government Alignment)

 * **Māori-Medium Education & Te Reo:** Focuses heavily on academic achievement benchmarks, standardized metrics, and foundational basics (such as structured literacy and numeracy). Under the current National-led government, curriculum developments like the proposed Indigenous framework _Te Tīrewa_ were restructured into frameworks like _Te Anga_ , drawing criticism from educational bodies and the Waitangi Tribunal for aligning more closely with standard Western-centric curriculum structures rather than autonomous indigenous frameworks. They support kura and Māori-medium options within the broader educational marketplace, prioritizing standard performance measures.

 * **Te Tiriti & Decision-Making:** Prefers to frame policy through the lens of equal citizenship and practical socioeconomic outcomes rather than co-governance or separate authority structures. They have actively rolled back specific co-governance provisions or references in various public sector agencies, emphasizing public service delivery based on individual need rather than ethnicity.

 * **Support for Children/Household Focus:** Focuses on economic management, tax relief for working households, and performance-based accountability in schools (e.g., reinstated national standards/reporting), while targeting public spending tightly rather than universal entitlements.

* * *

Key Questions to Ask the Parties:

When evaluating where your vote goes, you can look up specific candidate and party commitments on platforms like Policy.nz or check local candidate meetings for their stances on:

 1. **Autonomy vs. Mainstream:** Do they support devolving funding and design to a dedicated Māori Education Authority, or do they prefer funding managed through standard Ministry of Education channels?
 2. **Curriculum Control:** Where do they stand on honoring Indigenous curriculum designs versus a standardized national framework?
 3. **Household Cost Relief:** How do their school-support policies (like lunches, transport, and stationery assistance) directly target the realities of working Māori households in your community?

## AI Overviews

Answer ID: 19a73911-074e-4944-b8d3-2a6baa48a81e

For the **2026 New Zealand general election** , political parties offer starkly different visions for the future of Māori education, language, and school-level support. These policies directly impact decision-making authority, the survival and elevation of te reo Māori, and how working households are supported through school expenses.

The primary party positions are compared across three key areas below.

1\. Māori-Medium Education & Decision Making

The parties are divided between expanding Māori self-determination (mana motuhake) and integrating education under centralized or choice-based mainstream models.

 * **Te Pāti Māori:** **Pledges to establish an independent Māori Education Authority** as the centerpiece of its system reform. This body would return decision-making power directly to Māori and deeply embed mātauranga Māori across learning. They also propose a Kōhanga Reo Act, backed by an annual $250 million refurbishment fund and building 20 new kōhanga reo over three years.

 * **Labour:** **Committed to passing a member's bill to legally reinstate school boards' obligations to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi** , reversing changes made by the previous National-led government. They emphasize restoring partnerships with mana whenua and supporting Māori-led trades training through a contestable grant-based fund for iwi trusts and marae.

 * **Green Party:** **Strongly advocates for strengthening Te Tiriti obligations** within the Education and Training Act. They fully support the Waitangi Tribunal's recommendations regarding school governance and advocate for Māori-led education solutions.

 * **National:** **Focuses on standardizing the core mainstream curriculum**. They advocate for a structured, centralized approach with mandatory requirements—such as keeping the one hour per day minimum for reading, writing, and maths—rather than expanding independent Māori education authorities.

 * **ACT:** **Promotes the expansion of Māori-led charter schools** (kura hourua) under a school choice framework. ACT highlights that six Māori-led charter schools were successfully opened during the previous parliamentary term, arguing this model offers true flexibility and community control without creating separate state bureaucracies.

2\. Te Reo Māori & Curriculum Integration

Language funding and curriculum integration are highly contested topics in the 2026 campaign.

 * **Te Pāti Māori:** **Wants to make te reo Māori a core, compulsory curriculum subject** through to Year 10 in all public schools. They plan to reinstate the $30 million in funding for _Te Ahu o te reo Māori_ (the teacher language initiative).

 * **Green Party:** **Committing $200 million toward te reo Māori initiatives** to ensure the language flourishes across homes, schools, and communities.

 * **Labour:** **Supports the ongoing integration of te reo Māori and Aotearoa New Zealand histories** in the core curriculum, opposing rushed consultation processes that sideline Māori experts.

 * **National & ACT:** **Oppose making te reo Māori a compulsory subject** in mainstream schools. They argue that public funding should prioritize foundational educational outcomes like literacy and numeracy, and that secondary or cultural programs should remain community-driven or optional. Additionally, ACT seeks to prevent state institutions from allocating educational support based on ethnicity.

3\. Cost-of-Living & Student Wellbeing Support

For working households, financial reliefs and everyday school costs form a critical point of difference.

Party| School Lunches (_Ka Ora, Ka Ako_)| Transport & Financial Support| Wellbeing & Classroom Management
---|---|---|---
**Te Pāti Māori**| **Expand to all kura and public schools**| Free public transport for all students; write off student loans.| Universal free school counselling; mental health as a core subject.
**Labour**| **Keep school lunches local** , prioritizing supply by iwi, hapū, and local providers.| $20 weekly public transport cap; cut non-fees-free student loans by 10%.| Focus on equity and reversing rollbacks on worker and safety protections.
**Green Party**| Support universal extensions of child and school welfare.| Universal student allowance; complete student debt write-off.| Focus on diagnosis and learning support services for neurodiverse or disabled children.
**National**| Retain target-focused school lunch programs.| Cut student loan compulsory repayment rates from 12% to 10%.| Focus on restricting screen use in primary schools and reporting against milestones.
**ACT**| Focus on minimizing regulatory delivery costs.| Open Seat Rule: allow kids to use any passing school bus route.| Legally empower teachers to remove persistently disruptive students from class; cap uniform costs.

* * *

If you would like to look deeper into a specific area, let me know:

 * Would you like to compare specific **party tax plans or working family tax credits** to see how they impact your household income?

 * Do you want more detail on how a specific party intends to handle **local council representation and Māori wards**?