Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Family is the foundation of a prosperous and optimistic nation, and the most critical time for a family is when children are born. The Albanese government recognises this, and that's why I'm proud to support this bill, the Paid Parental Leave Amendment (More Support for Working Families) Bill 2023. This bill will empower families to do well, it will invest in women's economic equality, it will give fathers the capacity to be more involved in their children's lives at a critical time, it will have significant benefits for the wellbeing of families, and it will help drive Australia's economy. The bottom line is that this bill will enable parents to have more time with their newborns—six months in total. Whether you're a single parent, a young couple with twins or an adoptive parent, this bill creates an even stronger foundation for families to do well. It will ease cost-of-living pressures and create greater capacity for parents to share parenting, build careers and earn a wage.

I recently met up with parents and some of my youngest constituents in Torquay at a multiple birth playgroup. They said expanding paid parental leave to 26 weeks would make a real difference, advance gender equality and reduce the gender pay gap. Playgroup secretary Jemma Smith, the mother of one-year-old twins, said the changes to paid parental leave would have made a huge difference to her life with her boys, Angus and Charlie, when they were born. Longer parental leave would've allowed Jemma and her husband, Lachie, more precious time to bond with their children. She said: 'When you are the parent of multiples, you can spend a lot of your paid leave in hospital, so this would have been fantastic.' She also welcomed the extra flexibility that parents could exercise when taking leave to better accommodate the many demands facing working parents. Jemma said: 'It's so much harder to go back to work when you have twins. This would have been so helpful. Our family would have had a steadier income sooner.'

So, for young families like Jemma's and Lachie's, and for all of those who will soon have children, we are acting—acting to better support families. Many of these families will raise their children in my electorate of Corangamite, which is one of the fastest growing regions in the nation, with a significant cohort of young families. In the latest census, the largest change in my area was in the 30 to 39 age group, with a 30 per cent population increase. The urban growth area of Armstrong Creek, where my electoral office is located, is now the youngest locality in the region, with a median age of 30 years. There are similar growth areas, with many young families, in Bannockburn, Ocean Grove and Torquay. So, at a local level, this bill matters. It will directly benefit young families in my growing communities, and I'm proud to have advocated strongly for this much-needed legislation.

By giving more families access to government parental leave payments and providing greater flexibility in how they take leave, we're encouraging parents to share the important role of caring for children. In the process, we're advancing gender equality. These reforms mean that more women can work if they want to, to earn more and grow their super. Superannuation is particularly important for women. We know that women over 55 are the group most vulnerable to homelessness, and this is unacceptable. The reforms have been driven by our Labor caucus, which, for the first time ever, proudly has a majority of women. Our Labor government is absolutely committed to advancing equity and opportunity for women.

I seek leave of the House to continue my remarks later.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.