389 (2026). Hon Willow-Jean Prime to the Minister of Education

389 (2026). Hon Willow-Jean Prime to the Minister of Education: What was the source of the $80 million from within the Ministry of Education baseline that was used to fund the $413 million accelerated funding package she announced on 22 September 2025 and what Ministry work or programmes, if any, lost funding as a result?

Hon Erica Stanford: The $80 million for this initiative came from funding that was already appropriated to the Ministry of Education (the Ministry). It sits within Vote Education under the School Property Portfolio Management appropriation. The Ministry was able to make this funding available because projects were delivered more efficiently. For example, by using standard designs, and focusing on value for money across Ministry programmes. No other work or programmes lost funding to make this possible.