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Green Party co-leader James Shaw.
Green Party co-leader James Shaw has described the Ministry of Education’s decision to carpet 800 small and rural schools in synthetic carpets as “bonkers”.
In July, it was discovered that the Ministry of Education had elected to award a contract to carpet 800 small and rural schools to American manufacturer Miliken Group. The company manufactures solution-dyed carpets, chemical products, textile materials, and healthcare goods.
At the time, the contract – a part of the Government’s Improving Classrooms for Small and Remote Schools programme – was valued at $8 million.
The decision was labelled as “absolutely ridiculous” and a “slap in the face” by critics, which included Federated Farmers, Groundswell, The Campaign for Wool NZ and teachers.
Shaw, in an interview with Country TV, said the decision was a “very poor” one.
“I’m a bit frustrated about it because quite early in our first term, it was one of the real points of agreement between us [the Green Party], Labour and New Zealand First, was that we wanted Government facilities to be built and fitted out with sustainable materials, i.e. things like wool and wood that are grown here in New Zealand rather than plastics and steel and so on,” he says.
Shaw says the fact that point of agreement hasn’t flown on into decisions like the one around the carpets is “frustrating”.
Get the full story on Country TV, tonight at 7.30pm on sky channel 81, or get 30 days FREE access, online and on demand at www.countrytv.co.nz.
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