Instead of taking the many criticisms on the chin and vowing to do better, he attacked the scope of the Auditor-general’s review and the office itself which he said was facing ‘‘some real credibility issues’’.
It was not his finest hour.
That is not the message he was giving us when he launched the revamped and cheaper programme in October 2024 when he enthusiastically wolfed down the beef rissoles with mash and gravy which contained extra vegetables within.
He thought then children would be blown away by the meals. They have not been.
Maybe that is because it is not possible to produce nutritionally great meals which are also appealing and deliver them nationwide for $3 a pop.
Officials had warned the $3 cost had not been tested or thoroughly analysed and that it might not meet nutritional needs, but it carried on regardless.
There has been ongoing concern about the amount of food wastage in the programme, and although Mr Seymour says the main lunch provider has been asked to put in some more meal options which might be more appealing, we wonder how successful this might be.
Maybe at some point the government has to realise that the $360 million savings over three years, and getting the meals delivered on time, which Mr Seymour frequently highlights, do not add up to a successful programme.
The Labour Party has said it would return to the old model which involved more local providers and a higher cost per child if it led the next government, but has not given any detail about how it might address any concerns there were about its efficiency or cost.
It is worth remembering the point of the programme originally was to reduce food insecurity by providing access to a nutritious daily lunch at schools in the lowest socio-economic areas.
The Ministry of Education website used to point out that around one in five children live in households that struggle to put enough good-quality food on the table and that in some communities 40% of parents run out of food sometimes or often.
That information no longer seems to be included in the online details about the programme, but that sorry statistic is not likely to have improved since the latest official child poverty statistics show around one in seven children are living in material hardship.
That makes it all the more important there is good nutrition in the school lunch because it might be the only meal a child receives that day.
If the argument Mr Seymour is trying to advance is that it is better for children to eat something rather than nothing then perhaps the word healthy needs to be taken out of the lunch programme’s name.
Dunedin star of the show
It was great to see Dunedin Enterprise and Film Dunedin’s Auditioning Now won a gold award in the city promotion section of an international competition. Congratulations to all involved.
It was one of three gold medallists from the 13 finalists in this category in the US International Awards which celebrate excellence in branded videos and documentaries.
We would be surprised if the other two productions, promoting Switzerland’s Sion and Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Sarajevo, made their prize-winners for less than $20,000 as Dunedin did.
The light-hearted video features Dunedin-raised comedian James Mustapic trying to promote himself in a variety of well-known film roles in settings as diverse as Middlemarch, Olveston, Blackhead Quarry, the Exchange and the Otago Peninsula.
As the US International Awards website says: ‘‘As his performances spiral off course, it becomes clear that while James may not land the role, the true star of the show is Dunedin.’’
Hopefully, the award means the pitch the video makes to filmmakers, producers, location scouts and industry executives to explore the opportunities here will reach a wider audience.
