Penny Simmonds MP

It’s not likely to be a very happy Christmas for Southern Institute of Technology staff and students, as uncertainty looms over the future of the organisation, jobs and courses. It’s appalling that staff and students are living in this information vacuum, but it’s even worse that Te Pūkenga manageme

Some prices at the checkout these days are getting ridiculous and Southland families are feeling it, with the cost of a trolley full of groceries going through the roof. I can’t imagine how large families are coping and the increased demand at local food banks is an indication that people are really

The failure by the Ministry of Education to make regular checks on early childhood education centres, once they are licensed, leaves children and their families in a vulnerable position, Invercargill MP and National’s Early Childhood spokesperson Penny Simmonds says. “According to the Office of Earl

Despite much fanfare, and a $486 million spend from the Government, Health NZ has yet to deliver any real results for Southland. As part of the restructure, the Southern District Health Board was disestablished on July 1 and our local voice, and much of the scrutiny of our health services, was lost.

Polytechnics in the South are being forced to cut millions from their budgets because the Government’s mega-merger polytechnic entity Te Pūkenga is in such a mess, National’s Tertiary Education spokesperson and Invercargill MP Penny Simmonds says. “The Southern Institute of Technology (SIT) will be

The Government has failed Southland’s meat industry with its unrealistic immigration settings, which have created labour shortages, and are now affecting our exporting ability. The Meat Industry Association says meat exports are down a massive 11 percent this quarter, from the same time last year, a

South’s health crisis could be lost to Govt health reforms – Sapere report likely to fall on deaf ears – Simmonds Invercargill MP Penny Simmonds fears critically needed action to improve the South’s ailing health services will not be addressed with sufficient urgency as the Government’s health refor

International student numbers at the Southern Institute of Technology (SIT) have decreased since Covid 19. Across the country, the pandemic has seen numbers fall from 50,920 in 2020 to 39,005 in 2021 – a decrease of 23%. International students were once New Zealand’s fifth biggest export earner, bri