Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party, Assistant Minister for Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Despite the immense challenges of the past 16 months, Australia is roaring back to life. I'm so proud of our achievements. We have stuck together, looked out for each other and followed the health advice, which has kept our country safe. Our national economy is booming, with unemployment falling to just 5.1 per cent. This is lower than before COVID hit, which is just incredible. However, the job is not done. There is more to do. We are still faced with a global pandemic that continues to rage across the world. We must secure our nation's recovery going forward, and the Morrison government's 2021 federal budget puts Australian families at the centre of this plan. That's why I am absolutely thrilled that our budget will deliver record commitments in the essential services that millions of families rely on.

Aged care is something I care deeply about. To help our seniors we will provide an extra $17.7 billion to improve the aged-care system and add another 80,000 new home-care packages, taking the total to 275,000. Other key elements of this package include increasing the time that nurses spend with residents, as well as providing retention bonuses and new training places. We will also strengthen the standards of care. For people with a disability, I'm pleased that our government will commit a further $13.2 billion for the NDIS. With more than 450,000 Australians signed up to the scheme and 100,000 joining in the past year alone, it's crucial that the NDIS is fully funded and sustainable going into the future.

Mental health is another passion of mine. In this budget there is an additional $2.3 billion for mental health support, which will increase the number of headspace centres and strengthen suicide prevention efforts. Our $1.7 billion childcare package will boost Australia's workforce and make child care cheaper, helping 1,150 families in Capricornia.

Since the federal coalition government was elected in 2013, we have doubled school funding. Given their vital role in supporting a child's development, I am delighted that $2 billion will go into preschools. To combat the horror of domestic violence, there is $1.1 billion in further funding to help women impacted by abuse. This includes new financial payments, more counselling, more emergency accommodation and more legal support. We have also announced a $354 million women's health strategy, with new funding to address cervical and breast cancer, improved mental health support for new mums and more action to prevent premature births.

Through all these measures, this is a federal budget that puts families at the forefront of Australia's recovery from the pandemic.