Today, the government announced a 5% boost to schools' operational funding in order to reduce their reliance on "donations" and provide better computer technology.
National lost no time in denouncing it as "pork".
So, there you have it: according to the right, education - a core function of government which provides the basis of opportunity to every New Zealander - is "pork". Meanwhile, promising additional funding for private schools - an explicit state subsidy to private enterprise and the rich's social snobbery - is just fine and dandy. The hypocrisy is both obvious and deeply revealing, both of National's attitude toward the purpose of government (enriching their mates by looting the state), and the utter contempt the party of the few have for the rest of us.