Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Hodgins-May. Well, yes, I am aware that the government has received two reports about matters to do with early childhood education and care. That's because we commissioned them. That's because we want to do something about early childhood education and care. We're not about grandstanding; we're about actually delivering. I know, again, that's something the Greens can't quite get their heads around—this notion of delivering. It's about grandstanding.

What I also know is that members of our own caucus here have done more to support early childhood education and care than any single Greens MP or senator ever will. People like Senator Bilyk, who worked in the sector for a long time, and people like Senator Grogan, Senator Walsh and many others here who have worked in the sector and supported workers won't be taking lectures from the Greens party about platforms that they don't believe in themselves and pair up with Peter Dutton to vote against. What we're going to do is deliver better early childhood education and care, as we are doing, and we're going to support the workers in that industry to get the pay rise that they absolutely deserve.