Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Minister for Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

which this debate clearly is largely about—on an individual-by-individual basis. No doubt, when you moved those 77,000 mothers from one payment to the next, you did that on the basis that you considered that to be fair as a workforce participation method. But, of course, inside that group of 77,000 there will always be individuals who have either weaker or stronger capacities for greater workforce engagement.

What we have said is that we are willing to look at savings reasonably and rationally inside the family tax benefit system. We found $4.7 billion worth of those savings, and a very large part of those savings will be reinvested into sweeping reforms to child care. We find ourselves in a situation where 165,000 Australian families—including families where there is a sole income earner and including single-parent families—are crying out for simplified, better, more accessible and affordable child care. Noting, of course, that under your watch—

Ms Chesters interjecting—

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