Julia Banks (Chisholm, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Across Chisholm, child care is something that so many people are concerned about. Childcare costs are intrinsically linked to the family budget. In talking to parents with young children across Chisholm, whether they work as retail shop assistants, in small businesses, as teachers, nurses, carers, hospitality workers, tradesmen or volunteers, the issue and cost of child care is something that needs to be factored into their daily lives. As with anything in life, we need to plan the budget and important matters such as child care.

I am proud to be a member of the Turnbull government and I am most proud of the fact that we get things done. We are pragmatic and we deliver. This is underpinned by the Turnbull government's understanding that families are the backbone of our society, and we understand that every day parents are making choices in the best interest of their family. The flexibility of the Turnbull government's childcare reforms means that families can access a range of care options to suit the growing changes of their family's needs. Covered by the changes include in-home care, family day care, long day care, occasional care and outside-school-hours care, which includes before and after school and vacation care.

The Jobs for Families Child Care Package gives parents more choice and opportunity to work and provides children with a high-quality early education. We make no apology for the fact that our childcare package is for families who want to work or want to work more, whilst providing a safety net for those who need it. We believe in helping Australian families and giving them the opportunities to get ahead. For some, access to child care can mean the difference between working and not working. More affordable access to child care puts the opportunity of work within reach for so many more families.

This is a very fair and agile package, which is pragmatic and workable. It will provide the greatest hours of support in child care to the families who work the longest hours and the greatest subsidy and financial support to the families who earn the least. Additionally, an activity test will ensure that taxpayers support for child care is targeted to those who depend on it in order to work or work additional hours. The government is committed to reducing regulation and red tape for childcare providers. We will make the transition to the new system as simple as we can, to avoid burdening providers with paperwork and red tape.

In Chisholm, we have 11,770 children using approved child care, we have 5,900 families using approved child care and we have 122 childcare services. The Turnbull government continues to deliver—delivering for families in Chisholm and across Australia and helping Australian families, the backbone of our society.