Bridget Archer (Bass, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Of course, child care provides more than an opportunity for parents and carers to train and work, and it can set children up to thrive in school once they reach school age. The early years matter. There are countless studies that point to the lifelong impact on the intellectual and emotional development in the first five years of a child's life, and child care can provide critical support in this development. As I've said in previous speeches on this issue, as someone who lives and works in a rural community and as a mother of five children aged six to 17, I'm well acquainted with child care and I've seen and felt the cost impact of it across a whole range of governments of different colours, including under Labor when fees went up by 53 per cent with a one-year spike of an incredible 14½ per cent. Since we came to office, we're spending 77 per cent more than the opposition did during their time, with a record $10.3 billion this year, including $9 billion to subsidise the fees set by childcare services.

It's this government that has delivered on changes for working families that target and assist those who need it most. We introduced the new childcare package in 2018, which was a once-in-a-generation set of reforms that saw out-of-pocket costs fall. We've kept out-of-pocket costs down, and they're still almost a dollar an hour cheaper on average than before we introduced the package. In my home state of Tasmania out-of-pocket costs are the lowest, at $3.28 per hour for centre based day care. In this budget we'll provide an additional $1.7 billion to further help Australian families with more than one child aged five and under in those years that are the most tough on the hip pocket for families. Our budget investment is targeted and will boost the national economy by $1.5 billion per year from an estimated 40,000 Australians working just one extra day a week. These targeted and proportionate measures remove some cost barriers for second-income earners, especially women who want to return to work or to work an extra day a week. By increasing the subsidies for families with a second or third child aged five and under, families will benefit by up to $183 a week. In the Northern Tasmania electorate of Bass, which I represent, there are around 700 families who will benefit from this significant budget investment, including local mother of two Tayla Ralph, who told local media that she was thankful for the changes which will benefit her when her second child begins child care.

Additionally, the annual cap will be removed altogether for families across Australia as part of this year's budget investment, which has been supported by the childcare and business sectors alike, with the Business Council of Australia stating that the policy is 'good for mums and dads, good for businesses and good for the economy.' This record and targeted investment will make a difference to the bottom line for thousands of families who have young children in child care across the country. This childcare package is critical to supporting working families. Of course, as I have raised previously, the costs of child care is not the only issue that affects working parents. Accessibility to suitable child care is a particular challenge in regional communities, particularly for those who are employed or wish to be employed in shift work. For example, in my Northern Tasmania community I have been contacted by parents who are interested in undertaking seasonal work but aren't able to do so because they don't have the ability to get their children into care early enough or they don't have care close enough to where they need to work. Most recently I met with a solo parent who has a thriving business in three states, including Tasmania, and is struggling to find overnight care options to meet her needs.

These are challenges that I'm committed to working to address. I thank the minister for his willingness to listen and work with me on the accessibility challenges facing my electorate. I also thank Minister Tudge for his recent visit to Northern Tasmania, where I hosted a forum with representatives from our local childcare industry to discuss a range of topics, including the benefits of the recent budget announcement; some challenges facing local facilities, such as skill shortages; and the relationship between long day care and preschool. I appreciate the time that the minister took to listen to their concerns. I've committed to hosting further roundtable discussions with the sector. I look forward to working with the minister further to address the issues raised. Would the minister please expand on how the Morrison government is supporting parents to get back into work and to take on more hours?

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