The implementation of related policy measures will be particularly important for Pacific youth who, alongside Māori, are over-represented in current NEET statistics.116 117 94. There is, however, concern that the Bill constitutes a missed opportunity to embed the right to inclusive education into legislation, as recommended by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The provisions concerning the right of students with “special educational needs” are carried over from the incumbent Act. It is notable that a 2017 Parliamentary Inquiry into support for students with dyslexia, dyspraxia and autism spectrum disorder recommended legislative amendments to introduce a statement “in line with international law” on the purpose of support in education for disabled students and to clarify the definition of “inclusive education.”118 These recommended amendments are absent from the present Bill. 95. Bullying in schools remains a serious problem, despite initiatives such as the establishment of the Bullying Prevention Advisory Group (BPAG). Disabled students and SOGIESC students are more likely to experience bullying.119 96. The government’s Education Review Office (ERO) reported in 2019 that levels of bullying are “intolerably high” and have a significant impact on student wellbeing and achievement.120 In preparing the report ERO surveyed over 11,000 school students. Overall, 39% of students reported having been bullied, 41% of male students, 33% of female students and 58% of gender-diverse students. ERO found that while most schools had implemented or responded to the BPAG guidelines for schools, they generally did not adequately monitor and evaluate their policies, practices and outcomes.121 It is notable that, against this context, the Education and Training Bill does not address bullying explicitly. Indigenous rights and culture – the UNDRIP action plan 97. In March 2019, the Ministry for Māori Development, Te Puni Kōkiri, gained cabinet approval to develop an action plan on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).122 The Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP) has also provided advice on the development of the plan, arising from the EMRIP’s visit to New Zealand in April 2019.123 98. The Ministry has identified that the plan will includes actions that focus on the intersection between government priorities, Māori aspirations and international indigenous rights discourse; contribute 116 MBIE, The drivers behind the higher NEET rate for Māori and Pacific youth - insights from administrative data. This reports that in 2018 the NEET rates for Māori and Pacific youth were nearly twice the rate recorded for European and Asian youth, and significantly greater than the national rate. Higher NEET rates for Māori and Pacific youth are a persistent feature of New Zealand’s labour market. https://www.mbie.govt.nz/dmsdocument/10355-the-driversbehind-the-higher-neet-rate-for-maori-and-pacific-youth-main-report 117 The Ministry of Education implemented the Pacific Education Plan 2013-17, which was extended to 2019. A refreshed plan is yet to be developed. https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/topics/pasifika_education 118 Education and Science Committee, Inquiry into the identification and support for students with the significant challenges of dyslexia, dyspraxia, and autism spectrum disorders in primary and secondary schools, Recommendation 12, p 59 (note, these were among the minority recommendations of the Labour Party, NZ First and Green Party MPs, the political parties that constitute the current New Zealand government). 119 https://www.bullyingfree.nz/about-bullying/ 120 https://www.ero.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Bullying-Prevention-and-Response-in-New-Zealand-Schools-May2019.pdf, p 23 121 https://www.ero.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Bullying-Prevention-and-Response-in-New-Zealand-Schools-May2019.pdf, p 22 122 https://www.tpk.govt.nz/en/whakamahia/un-declaration-on-the-rights-of-indigenous-peoples#head0 123 End of mission statement by the United Nations Expert Mechanism of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to its visit in New Zealand, https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=24523&LangID=E 23