What is the Ministry of Education's latest estimate of the gap between Government funding increases for early childhood education and inflationary pressures since 2019?

Answer

The Ministry of Education advises me that expenditure per funded child hour – the unit of attendance used for ECE funding – has increased by 42% in nominal terms and 14% in real terms over the 2019/20 to 2024/25 financial period. The Ministry also notes that these figures do not account for expenditure from Votes outside Vote Education, including the significant investment associated with the introduction of FamilyBoost.