Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

The shadow minister is saying to me that that is absurd. I am giving her the Access Economics modelling figures. If she wants to have an argument with Access Economics, I suggest she get them on the phone. She might want to then look at how many times the Howard government used Access Economics for modelling before she gets into this debate.

I will also correct a completely incorrect statement that the shadow minister made about the childcare tax rebate. Obviously the costs of the quality agenda are important. Surely, everybody would agree that having rigorous quality standards for child care is appropriate. We are talking about the care of children, for goodness sake! Rigorous quality standards are appropriate. The costs as modelled by Access Economics are as I have outlined them. The government, by increasing the childcare tax rebate to 50 per cent, is obviously partnering in those costs, and you see the consequences of that in the budget.

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