Mallard should have run schools review past cabinet, says PM

11.45am

Prime Minister Helen Clark today distanced herself from unpopular school closures, saying they had not come through the usual cabinet process.

Last week the Government announced a five-year moratorium on school network reviews.

Reviews that led to the closures came out of the Education Ministry and the office of Education Minister Trevor Mallard, she told Newstalk ZB radio.

Mr Mallard should have run the reviews past Cabinet, which had not realised the scale of the closures, she said.

"It's one of those things that eventually you start to realise the full scope of," she said.

If ministers expected colleagues to back their decisions they should at least run them past them "in a very formal way".

"I've always encouraged the ministers in the Government that I lead ... to bring significant decisions to the cabinet, even though arguably they could do it on their own authority.

"Mr Mallard is a strong minister and he's got a clear idea of where he wants to go, but I think it would have been better if had gone through a full process."

The Government earlier identified some 100 schools nationwide for closure after 12 school network reviews.

Mr Mallard last month told communities in Northland, South Canterbury, West Coast, Invercargill, Upper Hutt, Taranaki and Wairoa about 60 of their schools were to close or merge in time for the 2005 school year.

The Government backdown came in the face of a public backlash against the closures, and as Labour trailed National in the polls.

The programme for school mergers and closures has been hugely unpopular.

Mr Mallard said anger at the reviews was detracting from the good work schools were doing.

- NZPA