Unstitching the cosy details

School uniform and stationery monopolies are lining the pockets of selected retailers at the expense of parents.

Now, the Government must act. Education minister Hekia Parata claims it's not her place to tell school boards what to do but that is a nonsense. Every week, her Government passes laws regulating the operation of the free market; it passes still more laws that police the lives of teachers and students to within an inch of their lives.

The real reason is that politicians are no longer willing to 100 per cent fund state schools. They expect principals to use their initiative to raise funds from their school community.

That is why schools in the leafy suburbs get less funding than those in poor areas - politicians know they can make up the difference by holding out the begging bowl to their rich alumni. Schools struggle to pay the bills. They must turn to parents and businesses for support, whether it's through school galas, sausage sizzles, sports team sponsorships or iniquitous deals with uniform suppliers.

And indeed, few would disagree that communities should support their local schools. What is objectionable is when the Government encourages principals to discard those basic values of honesty and transparency - the very values they should be passing on to New Zealand's children - to raise funds by duplicity or coercion.

One school, Tauranga Boys' College, has even gone to court to prevent a local company making and selling its uniforms cheaper than the school shop.

Now, the Herald on Sunday is calling on the Commerce Commission to investigate the extent of these exclusive deals and advise on how parents can be better protected. And we are asking for a clear signal from the Government that it will no longer tolerate such exploitation of cash-strapped families.