Kelly O'Dwyer (Higgins, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

In his maiden speech to parliament, former Prime Minister Paul Keating said:

In the last couple of years the government—

meaning the coalition—

has boasted about the increasing number of women in the workforce. Rather than something to be proud of, I feel it is something of which we should be ashamed.

Then, as now, the coalition is well ahead of Labor in advancing the economic and social role of women in Australia. So many of Labor’s pronouncements these days are breathtaking in their audacity, and this motion is no different. The success Australia has had to date in improving the economic position of women has very little to do with this government. Insofar as this government has been successful in creating positive outcomes for women it is because it has continued the policies of the previous, coalition government. Where it has not—where it has deviated—we have seen an undermining of the economic position of women. This government has made promises that it now refuses to honour.

This is a massive problem for everyone, but for women in particular. Before the 2007 election, Labor promised that they would be economic conservatives. They said that they would be prudent with our money and that, in their words, ‘this reckless spending must stop’. Instead we see spending with reckless abandon through botched government programs and billion dollar cost blowouts. The government promised to build an additional 260 childcare centres. They hailed this announcement as a solution to the double drop-off that was a crisis for Australian families. Not only have these 260 childcare centres not been built; before completing even their first term in government they have scrapped this idea. Now they say they will build a total of 38 childcare centres—though, given it has taken all of this time to complete just three, the women of Australia should not hold their collective breath.

By contrast, the Howard-Costello government delivered for the women of Australia. Apart from building a strong economic foundation for this country, the coalition also implemented important reforms that remain central to Australia’s social policy framework today. The baby bonus, implemented in 2004, provided one-off payments to families to assist them in making the necessary changes to work and family arrangements as a result of the birth of their child. The greater flexibility provided by the bonus increased fertility, with the number of babies per woman rising from 1.77 to 1.81 in 2005, breaking a 40-year decline. The childcare tax rebate introduced by the coalition remains an important policy that gives working mothers greater flexibility in managing work and family life. It removes the pressure from families by helping them meet the financial costs of child care.

But in this year’s budget, as my colleague has outlined, Treasurer Wayne Swan announced that the current childcare rebate of $7,778 per child will be slashed. Indexation of the limit has been scrapped and the rebate has been frozen for the next four years. The government knows it will have difficulty keeping inflation under control and it has ditched indexation as a pre-emptive measure. The coalition superannuation co-contribution scheme was also vital in assisting women in planning for retirement. It matches the contributions of employees each year and ensures that women are able to supplement their retirement savings over the course of their career.

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