Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Families and Payments) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Kelly Manning is a mum with four children who lives in Melbourne and has just completed six months of chemotherapy. Kelly will be more than $1,000 a year worse off because of the Prime Minister's cuts to family tax benefits which were introduced in the parliament today. Is the Prime Minister so out of touch that he is congratulating himself on a policy that will hurt vulnerable families like Kelly's?

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

The best possible way that the government can help families is to help families engage in the workforce to help families improve their circumstances. The government has made no secret of the fact that we consider the end-of-year supplements in family tax benefit should be saved and repurposed and reinvested in a plan to ensure better utilisation of child care. One thing that can be said is that members opposite have made a secret of that fact. And their memories are so unbelievably short that they do not recall that, not that long ago, in the first omnibus savings bill, they agreed with the government to close down the end-of-year supplements and family tax benefits for 374,000 families—and before the election they told those families they would not do that. But they agreed with the government that that end-of-year supplement should be closed down for those families so that it could be repurposed in a way—

Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Families and Payments) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order on relevance: this is a specific case of a family with four children that is going to lose $1,000.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Jagajaga will resume her seat. I listened carefully to the question; the member for Jagajaga's question certainly had an individual preamble but that was not the question. So the minister has the call and is in order.

A government member: Why not give the details?

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

Indeed. There are families for whom—you have agreed with the government—the end-of-year supplement should be closed. Indeed, you told those families you would not reach that agreement, as you led into an election. The government went into a full general election proposing to the Australian people that supplements invented during the Howard and Costello years for a purpose that no longer is relevant—a purpose of reconciling debts that now arise very seldom with respect to family tax benefits—should be repurposed and spent in a way that produces an ability for Australian parents to engage further and better in child care—374,000 families were the subject of that policy that you agreed with the government on. There are 230,000 Australian families—

Mr Burke interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat; the minister still has the call—unless you have finished, Minister.

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

Not yet, Mr Speaker! There are 230,000 Australian families who, it is estimated, want to engage, and engage more, in the Australian workforce but cannot do that because there is underinvestment and a lack of reform in child care. And for four years, you have offered them as an alternative absolutely nothing.

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—