National's unveiled its blue book of brilliance, outlining a plan to make New Zealand a top performer in education.

Reading, writing and maths would all have to be taught for an hour each day in primary and intermediate schools, under a National government.

National would also require regular "standardised, robust assessment" in the three core subjects for students in late primary and intermediate.

But Christopher Luxon insists this is not a return to the national standards of the John Key government.

RNZ political editor Jane Patterson reports, and National's education spokesperson Erica Stanford talks to Lisa Owen.