Across the political spectrum

We’ve already identified how two of the leading activists against national standards are aspiring Labour Party candidates.

In this TVNZ item, they interview Island Bay School (my former school incidentally) board chair Jane Forrest saying parents have no confidence in national standards. Tony Ryall suggests the campaign is organised by the unions (which it clearly is – Whale has mounds of documents showing this) and is politically motivated. TVNZ report that the campaigners they spoke to reject those claims and that they come from right across the political spectrum.

Now of course there will be some parents who are anti national standards and vote National. Just as many parents who are for national standards vote Labour. But what is interesting is to look at the ring-leaders who are driving this campaign, such as Ms Forrest.

An Auckland reader has found Jane Forrest (spelt Forest but the video looks like the same person) in hard left anti-reform documentary “Someone Else’s Country“, in 1996. She is on clip 5 at 16:45 railing against user pays, privatisation, bulk funding, and Americanised education. She goes on to call for unions and student associations to work together to battle the then National Government.

So that sounds like across the political spectrum doesn’t it?

I’ve been getting many e-mails from angry parents at schools that have signed up to the union campaign against the Government.