Carina Garland (Chisholm, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

This legislation is important, because every family deserves to have access to quality and affordable education. In speaking on this legislation, the Early Childhood Education and Care (Three Day Guarantee) Bill 2025, I reflect on how significant an issue early childhood education and care is for the people in my electorate of Chisholm. I've recently undertaken a survey with my electorate on the importance of education and care for their children, had a forum with the magnificent minister, Anne Aly, in my electorate and made a submission to the Productivity Commission on behalf of my community.

I think what is before us today is the building blocks of a really important institutional and structural change in this country. It will make our country better to have universal education for our youngest Australians. It will make our communities stronger and more prosperous.

What I really want Australians to understand, and what I really want the people of Chisholm to understand, is that this work that we as a government are doing is delivering something really good here, and those opposite are standing against it. They are not part of this positive change for our country. We know education opens doors. Those opposite want to keep those doors closed. As the Minister for Education has reminded us here in this chamber, those who need early education the most are the least likely to be able to access it, and this legislation ensures that those who need early education the most will be able to receive it. Again, I emphasise: I really want the people of Chisholm to understand and to know, and the people of Australia to understand and to know, that the Liberal Party do not support this—they do not support universal access to early education for all Australians. I think that is a really damning reflection on what the modern Liberal Party is. 'Modern Liberal Party' does feel a little like an oxymoron.

This is a bill that represents real change for Australian families. We know that, for too long, the Liberals' unfair activity test locked children out of early learning centres, penalising families who didn't meet the rigid work and study requirements. This system hit the most vulnerable families in our communities the hardest—low-income families, single parents and families that lacked support. The result? Thousands and thousands of children missing out on the early education that sets them up for life. I'm so proud that our government is taking a big step forward here and putting an end to that.

This legislation will benefit all of us. Yes, it will benefit families. It will benefit children—of course it will. But we are building something here that will ensure greater workforce participation and an educated workforce of the future, with our youngest minds being exposed to education early so that they can pursue whatever it is they want to and make a bigger contribution to our nation.

This bill replaces the Liberals' outdated activity test with a simple, fair guarantee: three days a week of subsidised early education for every family. This bill redefines how we support our children and their families. There won't be penalties for parents who aren't working a set number of hours—just a simple commitment that every child, regardless of their background, should get the best start in life. I can't believe those opposite cannot support that idea. The three-day guarantee boosts access to early childhood education and care and ensures an opportunity that those on this side of the House believe that every child deserves.

This isn't just about child care. This is about ensuring that every Australian family and every Australian child thrives. This legislation guarantees that families don't need to choose—and they shouldn't have to choose—between their child's education and making ends meet. We know families are doing it tough in our communities, and that's why on this side of the House we've implemented a number of measures to make life easier for Australians. Again, those opposite have opposed them almost every step of the way.

Parents need a fair go. We know that families were forced to cut hours because they couldn't meet the Liberals' outdated activity test. That's still happening. We're changing that. The 2018 childcare package cut down the number of subsidised hours of care that low-income families could access from 48 hours to 24 hours or just one day a week. That's what those opposite did. That's their contribution to early childhood education and care. This bill cuts through their red tape. Under this legislation, more than 100,000 families will have access to more hours of subsidised care, and this is how we are helping to ease the cost-of-living pressures on families and households. Around 66,700 families are expected to benefit from our changes in the first financial year of being implemented. This legislation ensures that the rules work for Australian families, not against them.

We have a strong record when it comes to early childhood education and care. We introduced a 15 per cent pay rise for early educators. They are people who deserve our thanks absolutely, but they deserve so much more than that. We've made child care cheaper, and this bill is a critical step towards continuing our work to build a system that is simple, affordable and accessible for every family. Over 10,800 families are already benefiting from cheaper child care. I know that I've spoken to many families over the course of the last little while who are better off. This has given them the freedom to work, study and support their families without the fear of losing access to early learning. This is a real game changer for Australian families. Through the $1 billion Building Early Education Fund, we're going to support more early learning centres to be built in underserviced areas, ensuring that every single child has access to quality education close to home. Again, that's what we think Australian children and their families deserve.

This is about building strong foundations for our children and their families to thrive. Through our legislation here and in the changes that we've made more broadly to this system, we've demonstrated that we will not tolerate a system that leaves Australian families vulnerable, that leaves Australian families behind or that leaves Australian children behind, frankly. I want to see, and I would hope that everyone in the chamber would want to see, a future where every child can succeed and where every family has the support they need to thrive. We know that the activity test those opposite introduced was never about supporting our communities. It was about cutting access and leaving too many families behind.

I'm really proud—it is a privilege—to be part of a government that is fixing that and building a future for so many through investing in education. This is real reform for families. This is an investment in the future. We don't just talk about the future on this side of the House, although we are ambitious and aspirational for what that future looks like; we invest in it. We make sure that we do everything we can with the privilege of government we have to ensure our communities thrive not just now but into the future. I really do think that this is going to change the lives of so many people in this country. As I mentioned, it will not just help families or children; it will help all of us in Australia to build the kind of prosperous country we all deserve to live in and ensure that every single person in this country has the kinds of educational opportunities that they deserve.

I spoke about the importance of education in my very first speech in this place, and I've witnessed in the term of this government so far the incredible commitment that we have had to making sure that everyone is able to realise aspiration and opportunity through education. This bill is another example of the work that we are doing to achieve that—to open those doors. It is really disappointing that, rather than investing in the futures of our youngest Australians, those opposite want to spend money on free lunches for bosses. That's their priority. On this side of the House, we want to make sure that every child gets the best possible start in life.

I know how welcome this is going to be in my community, in Chisholm. I know that this is going to change lives. It is going to mean that parents can make decisions to do more work and participate in the economy more. I know that this is going to mean that we have a culture where we value education in our communities and we understand where education can take people. We know that the first five years of a child's life are so significant for brain development. I don't think we would question the right for a child to access education at any other level, and we shouldn't question a child's right to access it from those very early years.

I thank the Minister for Education and the Minister for Early Childhood Education for their work here and in so many other areas. Thank you, on behalf of the children and the families in Chisholm, for the positive difference you are going to make to their lives. I commend this bill to the House.

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