Jacinta Collins (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for School Education and Workplace Relations) Share this | Hansard source

I know from my experience that you can trawl through the internet and achieve all sorts of complexions. It is a bit like doing social research; it really depends on what questions you are asking, where you are looking and how you conflate what you have.

Senator Nash interjecting—

The main point here—once Senator Nash quietens down—is that it is fairly obvious, from what Senator Nash is putting before us now and her questions about wanting detailed information on consultation of measures that have been before us for well over 12 months, that she is seeking to extend this discussion for some reason I cannot necessarily comprehend. Perhaps it relates to the coalition's former record on children's policy that I can recall from my days as a shadow minister. If we are going to make comparisons—and I will not allow myself to be provoked into a discussion of this nature for too long—I seem to remember Larry Anthony and a national agenda for children that never surfaced despite five years of discussion about the Howard government having a national agenda for children.

What we do know, what I have said before and what is very clear is that Labor has a very strong record of childcare affordability. The proportion of family income being spent on childcare out-of-pocket expenses has almost halved from 13 per cent down to seven per cent. Families see this; families know the level of support that they have been receiving from the government in child care. I can see the comparisons between what was available when I had young children and the support that families are receiving today. This is perhaps the most stark issue in trying to understand why the opposition is seeking to delay dealing with this matter. Again and again, we get stories about, 'It is going to cost more; there will be problems,' but why this opposition is steadfast in seeking to delay improvements in the quality agenda—the carer-to-child ratio for young children—astounds me. I really think, Senator Nash, you need to reconsider occupying the chamber's time with questions and information which is deliberately designed to protract this debate.