Alison Byrnes (Cunningham, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What a week this has been! The Albanese Labor government has hit the ground running. We are developing and introducing the reforms that Australians need: legislation to ease the cost-of-living pressures that are squeezing Australians; legislation to ensure integrity and restore public confidence in politics; and legislation to help more Australians access child care, buy their first home and afford the medicines that they need. The Labor government know that Australians are doing it tough, and we are taking action.

Labor is making child care more affordable for around 1.2 million Australian families. We are lifting the maximum childcare subsidy rate to 90 per cent for families with a combined income under $80,000, and we are increasing subsidy rates for families earning less than $530,000. The Family Assistance Legislation Amendment (Cheaper Child Care) Bill 2022, which was introduced this week, will be a source of relief for Australian families. Childcare costs have increased by 41 per cent over the past eight years. This is placing enormous pressure on families with young children, and many people are unable to work because childcare costs are too high.

According to the ABS, last year 73,000 people who wanted to work did not look for work because they couldn't make childcare costs work for them. This represents not only a loss for families but a loss for the Australian economy, as productive workers—predominantly women—are held back from contributing. I commend the Minister for Education and the Minister for Early Childhood Education for their work on this important reform, and I thank the Minister for Social Services, who crafted this policy in opposition.

Labor knows that cheaper child care is good for children, good for families and good for the economy. That is why we have taken action. We know that education, including early childhood education, is vital for turning aspirations into reality for Australians. Good health and access to universal, prompt and world-class medical care is also vital. As I spoke about earlier this evening in this House, the Albanese Labor government is making medicines cheaper for approximately 19 million Australians and helping to ease cost-of-living pressures. With the National Health Amendment (General Co-payment) Bill 2022, Labor is taking action to ensure that people are not forced to choose between their health and putting food on the table. In addition to this, we have expanded the range of medicines available under the PBS. These newly included medicines are used to treat a number of conditions, including some types of cancer and growth hormone deficiency in children. Labor knows how important access to health care is for Australians; we built Medicare and we will always protect it.

The Labor government is also helping thousands of regional Australians buy their first home. From 1 October regional first home buyers, like those in my electorate of Cunningham, will be able to purchase new or existing homes with a deposit of as little as five per cent. The Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee will provide 10,000 places each year to support regional first home buyers. Regional Australians are struggling to save for a deposit. This guarantee will help them and is just one part of the Albanese Labor government's ambitious housing reform agenda. This agenda also includes the creation of a $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund, a fund which will build 30,000 new social and affordable housing properties in the first five years and help to improve housing supply. We will also seek to create the Help to Buy program, which will reduce the cost of buying a home by up to 40 per cent for over 10,000 Australians a year.

I will finish on this final piece of important reform, a reform that will help to rebuild public trust in our political system and institutions. Just today, the Albanese Labor government introduced legislation for the establishment of a powerful, independent and transparent national anticorruption commission to investigate serious or systematic corrupt conduct across the entire federal public sector. Constituents in Cunningham were very clear when I was out talking to them during the election campaign that they wanted to see a national anticorruption commission, a commission that would return integrity to parliament and help to rebuild their trust in government. I thank the Attorney-General for bringing us closer to the establishment of this important body.

The people of Australia put their trust in Labor to lead the nation in difficult times. Our Labor government are listening and we are acting. With these bills and the many others we have introduced so far, we will deliver cheaper child care, deliver cheaper medicines, help people in regional areas buy their first home, restore integrity to parliament and restore trust in our government.