Anne Aly (Cowan, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Early Childhood Education) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Adelaide for his most excellent question and for his tireless advocacy for the early childhood educators and, indeed, the children in his electorate of Adelaide. Like all members of this Albanese Labor government, the member for Adelaide understands the importance of early childhood education and care for children, for families and for the economy. Unlike those opposite, we on this side value the skilled and important work that early childhood educators and early childhood teachers do. You won't hear anyone on this side of the House refer to early childhood education and care as childminding and outsourcing parenting. That's not what we do.

This government has made a historic commitment to contribute funding towards lifting the wages of early childhood education and care workers, something that I'm incredibly proud of. Indeed, I watched the faces of the early childhood educators in the gallery on budget night when the Treasurer announced a multibillion-dollar provision in the budget for better wages in the care economy, including in the early learning sector, and watching the tears flow from those early childhood educators was really something that I know touched the hearts of everybody on this side of the House.

Reviews by the ACCC and the Productivity Commission have highlighted to us that we simply cannot achieve the necessary reform in the early childhood education and care sector without a strong and sustainable workforce. You don't just need reports to tell you this. Anyone who has visited an early childhood education and care centre, whether it's the member for Adelaide or any of the members behind me with whom I've had the pleasure of visiting early childhood education and care centres and speaking to early childhood educators and carers, knows the pressure that they're under. As one early childhood educator told me, 'We love what we do, but love doesn't pay the bills.'

The budget the night before delivered not only a historic second surplus but also cost-of-living relief measures for all Australians. Early childhood educators will get a boost in their wages, and they'll also get a tax cut just like every Australian taxpayer right across the country. We will continue our record of responsible fiscal management. We will continue to provide cost-of-living relief without adding to inflation, and we will lay the foundations for a future where all Australian children thrive, no matter who they are and no matter what their background. (Time expired)

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