Amanda Stoker (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Education and Training, Senator Birmingham. Will the minister update the Senate on the implementation of the government's new childcare package?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Stoker for her question and her very strong interest in ensuring that Australian families have access to the best possible child care and early childhood education services. One of the benefits of a strong economy, of the Turnbull government's strong economic management, is that we as a government are able to deliver the biggest improvements to childcare support for Australian families in 40 years. From 2 July—in just under two weeks time now—nearly one million Australian families are set to benefit from a better, fairer childcare system in the future. Nearly one million families are set to reap the rewards of an additional $2½ billion in support for childcare services, because we want to make it easier for those families in terms of juggling their household budgets and in terms of meeting their work and family obligations.

We're increasing the subsidy rate—indeed, targeting that increase towards the lowest-income-earning families. Around 370,000 Australian families earning less than around $67,000 will see the rate of the childcare subsidy increase from around 72c in the dollar to 85c in the dollar under our reforms. Other families on medium incomes will also see real benefits. And 85 per cent of all families using the childcare system will no longer be subject to the dreaded annual childcare rebate cap—a cap that currently means that midway through the year many families run out of childcare support and have to pay full-tote odds. Instead, that's being abolished for those families, ensuring that they can work as many hours and days as suits them without childcare costs being an impediment. All up our program is estimated to result in around 230,000 Australians choosing to work or work more, increasing their workforce participation, ensuring that we have a virtuous cycle there. The strong economy is allowing us to make this investment and this investment in a fairer childcare system is going to help underpin a strong economy into the future.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Stoker, a supplementary question.

Amanda Stoker (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Can the minister explain how families will benefit under the package?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Based on analysis of many of the families who have registered for the new system to date, they are set to benefit by around $1,300 per child per annum. Indeed, a family that has two children in childcare services is going to be more than $2,600 per annum better off on average under these reforms. And they apply right across Australia. In Senator Stoker's home state of Queensland, nearly 200,000 families are set to benefit. Across the electorate of Longman in Queensland, some 7,100 families are set to benefit. In Tasmania, some 17,700 families will benefit—in the electorate of Braddon, around 3,100. Across my home state of South Australia, some 61,000 families will benefit, including more than 4,700 families in the electorate of Mayo. Each of these families is benefitting because we're making an investment in a better system, a fairer system—one that is possible because of the Turnbull government's strong economic management.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Stoker, a final supplementary question.

Amanda Stoker (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What do families need to do in order to benefit from the Turnbull government's new childcare package?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Already more than 900,000 Australian families have registered to receive the new childcare subsidy. I thank those families who've taken that step to update their details, to follow the simple process of doing so. Some 97.5 per cent of providers have completed the transition steps as well. We're working to make sure that each of those providers, one by one, successfully transitions. The transition is proceeding extremely smoothly, but we urge any family who's not yet updated their details to do so—to visit education.gov.au/childcare, to log into their myGov account or to take advantage of the dedicated call lines we've established through Centrelink, which have had far lower take-up rates than anticipated and through which people can get the help required—to ensure that anybody, in addition to the more than 900,000 people who've made the switch today, can receive every cent they're entitled to and the childcare support that will allow their families to choose to work the hours and days that suit them into the future.