Kate Thwaites (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Women) Share this | Hansard source

Some might say 'unhinged', but I probably wouldn't—so detached from the reality of the lives of Australian families and Australian women's lives. We saw Senator Simon Birmingham, in an opinion piece at the end of last year, making an incredibly out-of-touch and frustrating claim, suggesting that changes to the activity test would mean that women would be dropping their children off to child care so that they can go and play golf or do Pilates. That is not the reality of Australian women's lives. They are not thinking: 'I've got two hours. I will pop off to Pilates.' They are thinking: 'How do I hold down a job? How do I support my family? How do I do all the other things I need to get done?' And I hope they do get a bit of time for some Pilates and some exercise, but certainly they are not thinking, 'Well, I'll just pop my child into child care for two hours now, because the government has taken away the activity test, to go to Pilates.' I would encourage those opposite to get in touch with some Australian women, to get in touch with some Australian families. It is concerning that someone who, up until very recently, was such a senior member of the Liberals frontbench team would show such disrespect to Australian women and Australian families.

This is a benefit for Australian families, and, in particular, it is a benefit for those families who can get locked out of our early education system—not because they're going to Pilates but because they have other strains and pressures on their lives that make it difficult for them to access early education. This is actually about making sure those children who most need that support to get the best start in life are able to access it. Again, it is something that those opposite should be able to bring themselves to support, but, once again, they are saying no to Australian families and no to Australian women. They are diminishing the value of this really important service for all children in our community and diminishing the value of the work that our early educators do. Of course, it's not, as I said, just in this area, when it comes to the difference that this government is making for women, where we see opposition from those opposite. We see time and time again that, when this government brings forward measures that are designed to support the lives of Australian women, what we get from those opposite is a no.

Just last week, again in the Senate, Senator Canavan was targeting the Workplace Gender Equality Agency, suggesting it was a form-filling agency that was taking away from businesses judging people on merit. Gee, I wonder who he's been listening to. For someone who was a minister in the last government, it is surprising how little Senator Canavan understands not just about a government agency but also about women's lives. Through WGEA our government has been driving forward gender equity in Australian workplaces. Again: this is good for Australian women, it is good for Australian families, it is good for Australian business and it is good for the Australian economy. This term, we have worked and we have closed the gender pay gap to its lowest level ever. There's more work to do, but that's the achievement we have already made. We have helped employers make their workplaces more flexible for staff with caring responsibilities, through our reforms to paid parental leave. We are working to remove barriers to workforce participation, with measures like this three-day guarantee. We're collecting the data, through WGEA, that lets us know that we are making this progress. This is not a form-filling exercise. This is about making sure that Australian women are supported, that Australian businesses are better off, and that Australian children get the best start in life. Those opposite should really have a look around, read the room, talk to some Australian women, find out what's going on in their lives and get behind these measures.

Our government has taken a deliberate view that education in this country does need to be looked at from all levels—from early education, through to primary and secondary schooling, and up to university and TAFE. We are investing, across all of these levels, to give Australians the best education they can have. As a Victorian, I am particularly pleased to say that last month we reached a historic funding agreement with the Victorian government to put all public schools in Victoria on the pathway to their full and fair funding. Through this agreement, our government will be increasing our funding to Victorian public schools by $2.5 billion over the next 10 years. This is the biggest ever investment in Victorian public schools by an Australian government. We will see this play out in our schools in an incredibly positive way for students in my community and in schools right across Victoria.

It goes to all those things that I know parents want to see in our local schools—more individualised support for students, mandated evidence based teaching practices and more mental health support in schools. Coupled with these broad reforms that we're delivering in the early education sector, this full and fair funding for public schools in Victoria is a massive win for children in my community and for students in my community. Right across Victoria they will be getting the support and quality education that they need, all the way from those early childhood years right up to year 12.

Wait—it doesn't stop there. At the tertiary level, our government is making significant investments to support both university students and TAFE students. We have, of course, already delivered cost-of-living relief to students with HECS debts, cutting $3 billion worth of HECS debt through our changes to the student loan indexation formula. Around 22,000 people in my community saw credits on their HECS balances last year. We've been clear that, if our government is returned at the coming election, we are taking HECS relief even further by cutting 20 per cent off of all student loans. This will wipe $16 billion in student debt, benefiting three million Australians. Of course, today, the Treasurer has also announced that he is making moves to make sure that HECS debts don't get in the way of students being able to apply for a mortgage and their first home, and that is a very important reform.

Thousands of students in my community continue to benefit from the fee-free TAFE, enabling access to courses in important industries, like early education and like construction, nursing and technology. At every level, we are doing the work to allow Australians to access quality education. Again, I come back to the fact that this is what this particular bill is all about—making sure that every child in Australia gets the best possible start in life. Every child in Australia does have the right to the best possible start in life, to a quality early education. The activity test introduced by those opposite has been a barrier for those families who most need that access, and we are taking it away. We are supporting Australian families. We are supporting Australian women. We are doing the work to build our country, to make sure that there is a positive future, and we are doing it while supporting early educators. We are doing it while bringing costs down for families. This is the work we will continue to do in the face of opposition from those on the other side, in the face of an opposition that cannot see when a measure is good for Australian families and good for Australian women and, in fact, that actively works against our efforts to support the lives of Australian women and Australian families. We won't be deterred. We will continue the work up, and I am very pleased to support this bill.

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