6 July 2021
John Luke
[FYI request #15704 email]
Tēnā koe John,
Thank you for your request of 8 June 2021 to the Ministry of Education requesting various
information about the Tomorrow’s Schools Independent Taskforce
.
Your request has been considered under the Of icial Information Act 1982 (the Act) and my
response to your particular questions is set out below.
1. I would like to know who else is on this "independent Minister of Education-
appointed taskforce to review the governance, management and administration of
the New Zealand compulsory schooling system" taskforce and their bio if you
have.
I am refusing this part of your request
under section 18(d) of the Act as the information you
have requested is publicly available at the following link:
Independent Taskforce members (education.govt.nz).
2. Their pay rate and how much the Ministry has paid them in the past two years.
Payment to taskforce members is reflective of the commitment made to the Review of the
Tomorrow’s Schools system. Since the appointment of the Tomorrow’s Schools Independent
Taskforce (the Taskforce) in April 2018, a significant amount of work was carried out to
research and gather a wide range of education stakeholder views.
Over July – September 2018, the Taskforce conducted over 200 meetings with the public from
Kaitaia to Invercargil . In addition to public meetings, the Taskforce considered the advice of
a representative 45-member Cross-Sector Advisory Panel. These discussions informed an
initial report, which was completed in November 2018. Upon the report’s release to the public
for consultation, a further 100 meetings were held, and more than 5000 public submissions
were considered by the Taskforce. Al of this informed the Taskforce’s final report that was
submit ed to the Minister in July 2019.
Independent Taskforce members were paid differently depending on their role. The Chair of
the Taskforce was paid at a rate of $1000 per day, while other members were paid at the rate
of $750 per day. These rates were consistent with Cabinet Office Circular CO (12) 6 -
Fees
framework for members appointed to bodies in which the Crown has an interest, which was
the recommended framework at the time.
OIA: 1262288
National Of ice, Mātauranga House, 33 Bowen Street, Wellington 6011
PO Box 1666, Wel ington 6140. Phone: +64 4 463 8000 Fax: +64 4 463 8001
education.govt.nz
It is important to note the Ministry did not pay al members directly. Taskforce Chair, Bali
Haque, was paid directly in his capacity of Education Consultant. The other Taskforce
members continued to be employed by their organisations, and the employers invoiced the
Ministry of Education for their staff’s time.
We have interpreted your request for the amount paid to Taskforce members in the “past two
years” as referring to the last two financial years. The total amount of fees paid to Members of
the Taskforce in 2019-20 was
$92,826. No fees were paid to the Taskforce members in the
2020-21 financial year as the Taskforce is no longer active.
3. How you call for public express of interest or your recruitment process for this
taskforce.
I am refusing this part of your request under section 18(d) of the Act as the information you
have requested is publicly available at the following link:
Tomorrow’s Schools Review: Appointments to the Independent Taskforce (education.govt.nz)
4. Please also supply the taskforce's term of reference.
I am refusing this part of your request for Terms of Reference
under section 18(d) of the Act
as the information you have requested is publicly available at the following link:
Terms of Reference (education.govt.nz).
Please note, the Ministry now proactively publishes OIA responses on our website. As such,
we may publish this response on our website after five working days. Your name and contact
details wil be removed.
Thank you again for your email. You have the right to ask an Ombudsman to review this
decision. You can do this by writing t
o [email address] or Office of the
Ombudsman, PO Box 10152, Wellington 6143.
Nāku noa, nā
Dr Andrea Schöllmann
Deputy Secretary
Education System Policy
education.govt.nz
Document Outline
- The request and due date
- Background
- Proposed response
- Consultation
