Maxine McKew (Bennelong, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government) Share this | Hansard source

I have heard that, but I have also heard what he has said in the past, and what we have to ask now is: is this the gospel truth? It is one thing for the Leader of the Opposition to stand up and say this now, and I hope he is right on this, but we do know that he is already burdened by the fact that Australian women do not really trust him on a lot of these issues. I know that Australian women actually nurse a suspicion, well founded, that the Leader of the Opposition is likely to be just a bit too intrusive when it comes to how women manage their day-to-day lives. Modern women do not want a bar of this.

So I think the Leader of the Opposition has belatedly dreamt up a paid parental leave scheme of his own, one which is not entirely supported by his party but one which he says is bigger and better and will be funded by big business. It is a reckless and irresponsible scheme that slugs big business, who will no doubt have to pass the costs on. Fundamentally, the opposition leader has failed to make the case for the design of his scheme, which will include women on high incomes of $150,000 or more, who do not need government support, and be funded by a tax on business. As for the women who will get this maternity leave payment, those on $150,000 income will get a considerable payment far in excess, by the way, of the payment made to stay at home mothers, who will be getting the baby bonus of $5,000. That is an interesting point for the Leader of the Opposition to ponder as so many members on his own side have raised the question of financial adequacy for stay at home mothers, which Labor is determined to preserve by retaining the baby bonus.

It is not beyond belief that what we are seeing from the Leader of the Opposition is perhaps a cynical delaying tactic to try to hobble the scheme that the minister for families and others have patiently progressed over the last few years. But now we have the Leader of the Opposition saying that the bill needs to be enacted soon and he will not oppose the government scheme. Well, if he is fair dinkum he will commit to passing this bill through the parliament before it rises for the winter recess. Let us hope we see that. I think the young families across Australia who have waited for so long deserve that certainty. With pride, with hope and with great enthusiasm, I therefore commend the bill to the House.

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