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Invercargill's rebel Mayor Tim Shadbolt says a $6.5 million funding boost for the city's polytechnic has given him confidence he can wring even more cash out of the Government.
The Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) today said it was giving the Southland Institute of Technology (SIT) an additional $6.56 million to enhance the services it provided in Southland.
But it stressed the money, from its Quality Reinvestment Fund, was separate and unrelated to the $6m it slashed from SIT's Christchurch campus and some computer courses last year.
Mr Shadbolt has been waging war on the Government over policy changes that led to the cuts - made on the basis the SIT courses doubled up on courses already existing at other institutions.
Mr Shadbolt has protested the cuts with full-page advertisements in major newspapers and promised a $300,000 campaign, in breach of the Electoral Finance Act, to bring down the Government.
He hailed today's announcement as a major victory.
"It might just be two yards of motorway in Auckland but it's a tremendous boost for us," Mr Shadbolt said.
He said SIT had only received $1m in the past two years from the Quality Reinvestment Fund and the huge leap in the amount awarded this year was clearly spurred by his take-no-prisoners campaign.
"To suddenly get $6.5 million is a huge victory," he told NZPA.
"It gives us confidence to recognise that yes the Government can dramatically increase your funding very quickly.
"It gives us confidence I think to carry on and I think that's how most of the corporate funders will feel about this - that this is only the first step and there is a long way to go."
However, the ultimate decision of whether to proceed with the anti-Government campaign would depend on his financial backers, who included the chief executives of Talley's, the Richardson Group, Southport, ILT and Comalco. It would take two to three weeks to meet with those backers.
Mr Shadbolt said SIT's board would decide tonight whether it would accept the $6.56m offer. The institution had originally asked for about $9m.
"We're very excited and we'll be having a big party tonight," Mr Shadbolt said.
Last year Mr Shadbolt published advertisements in daily papers calling the SIT funding cuts "devastating" and "destructive".
The advertisements went on to say the National Party would be more "sensitive and encouraging" towards successful, trade-based technical institutions, such as the SIT.
However he has not published any adverisements since the Electoral Finance Act came into force on January 1.
Under the Act anyone spending more than $12,000 on political advertising must register as a "third party" or be in breach of the Act.
Those who do register with the Electoral Commission can spend only up to $120,000.
Mr Shadbolt has said he is not willing to register with the Government "just for the right to free speech" and is prepared to go to jail for the campaign.
- NZPA / NZHERALD STAFF
* Prior to the funding announcement, Mr Shadbolt gave a video interview with nzherald.co.nz in which he outlined the issues facing the southern town.
