Count to Ten (parts two and three)

The government's ten point plan includes two educational goals.  From the National Party website:

The Government has two targets for boosting skills and employment: 

• In 2017, 85 per cent of 18-year-olds will have NCEA Level 2 or an equivalent qualification (up from 67 per cent in 2010).

• In 2017, 55 per cent of 25-34 year olds will have a qualification at Level 4 or above (up from 52 per cent in 2011).

I'd be stoked if I were the Australian government - more free training for the future workers and taxpayers of Australia.  But of course it's not going to happen because National have not considered how they will fund it.  In the press release there's no mention of where the money to increase the numbers of people passing NCEA Level 2 by 27%.  After the reductions in funding for trades and apprenticeships, night school and tertiary education, and reduced access to student allowances and loans, the otherwise unambitious goal of an extra 3% (isn't that about the margin of error on surveys?) is likely to be challenging.

I'll give National credit on this one, I think they do have a viable plan.  It will be announced shortly and I'm not wanting to steal their thunder so I'll leave it to them and give out only this little clue - have a good look through your Weetbix packet.  If you've passed National Standards you should be capable of filling out the details.

The Clean - Compilation, 1986