Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Education and Youth. Will the minister update the House on how the Morrison government is supporting Australian families, including in my electorate of Lindsay, to reduce the cost of living and to take on more work if they choose to?

Alan Tudge (Aston, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Youth) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Lindsay for her question and for her tremendous advocacy for Western Sydney. As the member for Lindsay knows, the focus of this government is supporting Australians into work and supporting our post-COVID economic recovery. That's exactly why, just over a week ago, we announced a further $1.7 billion in childcare subsidies to remove barriers for parents, particularly for mums who want to return to work or want to take on more hours. This policy is very much targeted at where it is needed most. That is for those families who have two or more children in child care because, despite the fact that those hourly fees may be modest, if you have two or more kids in child care they can add up. So we're increasing the subsidy on the second and third child up to 95 per cent and we're also removing the annual caps so that no family will ever hit that cap and therefore create a disincentive to work.

We estimate that this will help 250,000 families across the country, and that includes 1,700 families in the member for Lindsay's electorate. It means that a family in the member for Lindsay's electorate who might be earning, say, $110,000, which is the median amount for those families in child care, who has two kids in full-time care will be $120 per week better off. Or you might be a single mum with a couple of kids and earning $65,000, wanting to work, or needing to work, that extra day—that fifth day of the week. That particular person will be $71 per week better off as a result of this particular package. But it's not just good for those individual families who will benefit from this package, it's also good for the economy. Treasury estimates that there will be a $1.5 billion increase to GDP as a result of this package because the equivalent of 40,000 people will be doing an extra day a week of work.

Of course, this builds on the tremendous amounts that we've already put into child care. Since coming to office, our childcare assistance has increased 77 per cent: 280,000 more families have their child in child care than did when we first came to office, and women's workforce participation is at record levels—in part because of our childcare policy. We believe in choice for families to work if they want to and will back them all the way in order to do exactly that. That's what this childcare policy does.