Act MP Donna Awatere Huata is calling for the Government to copy Britain and jail parents of repeat truants.
Her call followed the 60-day jailing of Patricia Amos for failing to ensure her children regularly attended their school in Oxfordshire.
The maximum penalty in New Zealand is $150.
"New Zealand must follow Britain and take a zero-tolerance approach to truancy," said Mrs Awatere Huata, who plans to draft a member's bill.
Crime and truancy were closely linked, and the number of offences committed by children had increased by more than 4000 in the past two years.
- NZPA
Act Party wants hard line against truants' parents
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