Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

If the Deputy Speaker will allow me, I will take the interjection, because it is a very important one. I do want to indicate to the member for Kennedy and to all the mothers who are at home—and increasingly we are having dads at home as well—that we certainly respect the hard work that they undertake at home caring for their newborn babies and their children. We want to make sure that we do give people a choice, and that is why we are continuing to support the payment of the baby bonus and family tax benefit parts A and B. If a mother or a father is entitled to paid parental leave, they will not be entitled to the baby bonus or family tax benefit part B, and it will be taxable, whereas a mother at home will be entitled to both the baby bonus and family tax benefit parts A and B. So we certainly do want to support mums at home, and I absolutely respect the hard work that they do.

Mr Katter interjecting—

See this speech in context