Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Paid Parental Leave Amendment (Improvements for Families and Gender Equality) Bill 2022. Again, it gives me great pleasure to speak on a bill that is delivering on the Albanese Labor government's election commitments and a bill that advances women and gender equality in this country. This bill will make life better for over 180,000 families. It will ease the cost-of-living pressure that are being felt by all Australians, because it's a bill that serves families first—and, again, it's a Labor government that introduces these social changes.

Businesses, unions, experts and economists all understand that one of the best ways to boost productivity and participation is to provide more choice and more support for families and more opportunity for women. We on this side of the chamber understand the value of women so much better than those on the opposite benches. The Paid Parental Leave Amendment (Improvements for Families and Gender Equality) Bill 2022 will support women's workforce participation, while helping more dads and partners take time off work to be with their children. I know the benefits firsthand. My husband and I had to reverse roles—not by choice—and I understand the true benefits of the bonds that dads can have with their children. It sets them in good stead for a fantastic life experience.

We said during last year's budget that we would deliver a better cost of living, more affordable housing, cheaper child care and medicines, expand paid parental leave and get wages moving again. These changes take effect from July 2023 and will deliver a single Paid Parental Leave scheme with flexible 20-week entitlements for working parents. I'm delighted about what this will mean for parents in my home state of Tasmania. It will mean greater flexibility and efficiency for parents. It's child friendly and empowers women and girls to be the best versions of themselves. Around 180,000 Australian families take up this benefit each year, and they will now be able to share the entitlement in a way that is best for their families' circumstances.

The changes will enable either parent to claim parental leave, pay first and access the entitlements in multiple blocks as small as one day, with periods of work in between. A new family income test of $350,000 per annum will also see nearly 3,000 parents become eligible for the expansion of paid parental leave. Pending passage through this place, the changes come into effect for parents whose children are born or adopted from 1 July 2023. Parents can pre-claim up to three months before the expected date of birth or adoption so there is no delay in receiving payments. Pre-claims under the improved system will open from the end of this month.

This legislation is an important first stage of our major reform of the Paid Parental Leave scheme and lays the foundation for expansion to 26 weeks by 2026. Not only will the government's reform help families better balance work and care but also will support participation and productivity over the longer term, providing a dividend for the Australian economy and communities across Australia. In other words, it means that women can step out of the role of parent—they're still going to be parents but having that full responsibility—by going back into the workforce to enable them to continue developing the important skills that will help them build a stronger economic outcome for themselves through their working lives.

Crucially, the bill will give more families access to the government payment, provide parents greater flexibility in how they take their leave and encourage them to share that care responsibility. It's great for families right across this country. The bill delivers six key changes: combines the two existing payments into a single 20-week scheme; reserves two weeks of the scheme for each parent, to support them in taking time off work after the birth or adoption of their child; simplifies the claims process by removing the categories of primary and secondary carers, so it's easy for parents to access the payment; expands access by introducing a $350,000 family income test under which people, including single parents, may qualify if they do not meet the $156,647 individual income test; increases flexibility for parents to choose how they take their paid parental leave days and transition back to work; and sixth, allows eligible fathers and partners to access the payment, irrespective of whether the mother or the birth parent meets the income test of residency responsibility. It is fundamental that this bill passes the parliament by the end of March so that parents expecting to give birth or adopt on or after 1 July next year have the option of pre-claiming, to receive their government entitlement as soon as they are eligible.

Labor will introduce further legislation to progressively increase the Paid Parental Leave scheme from July 2024 until it reaches 26 weeks—a full six months—in 2026. This is the largest expansion since Labor established the scheme back in 2011. It's something that parents of my generation never had access to. This will be such a good fundamental change for families, for parents and for their children. I echo the words of the Minister for Social Services, Amanda Rishworth:

We know what happens when both parents are not supported to take time off paid work to care for their babies—usually Mum works much less, or leaves the workforce altogether to take on caring responsibilities, while Dad remains in full-time work …

This pattern persists for years after the child's birth and is a key driver of gender gaps in workforce participation and earnings.

I urge everyone in this place to support this bill. This bill will support women. It will help remove that issue that many women face when they become mothers, having to choose between being the parent who is the full-time carer or giving up their opportunity in the workforce. The reality of having both parents being able to share in that caring role is so important. It provides relief around the cost of living. It also strengthens the bond between the parents and provides women the opportunity to return to the workforce, if they want to, earlier than they otherwise may have done so.

As I said earlier, the bond that is developed between parents in those first very important months and years cannot be underestimated in setting the foundations for the relationship that children have with both parents. Frankly, if I was being honest in this chamber, I'd say the fact that my husband became the carer and the homemaker meant that our children actually much preferred my husband to cook. In fact, they still do—and I'm being blatantly honest about this. Those relationships are terribly important.

The other benefit is what it does for women being able to establish and maintain their skills and their place within the workforce. We know that there are too many women of my generation, and beyond, who don't have enough superannuation to be able to retire. This will help solve that issue. It's not the only thing that we need to do, because we still need to increase superannuation for all Australians, but I see such great benefits for the families in my home state of Tasmania: the relationships are going to be stronger, the bonds are going to be better, productivity and the economy are going to be stronger, and skills in our workplaces will continue to grow because women won't feel that they have to step away from paid employment.

Once again, it's a Labor government that steps up to introduce legislation to ensure that both parents get the support to develop the bonds and to share those caring responsibilities. We've have had almost a decade of inaction on behalf of the former Liberal government. And it's sad that you have to wait until there's a Labor government to ensure that these social changes are introduced. So, I urge those on the crossbench and those on the opposite side, in opposition, to actually vote for this important legislation. I commend this bill.