Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Families and Payments) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question again is to the Minister for Social Services. Yesterday, when the minister was queried about his cuts to family tax benefits that will hurt grandparent carers, the minister answered, 'The point being made here by Labor is a fair point.' The minister then confirmed grandparent carers will be $2½ thousand a year worse off. Does that mean the minister designed these cuts to family tax benefits in full knowledge that they would leave grandparent carers around $2½ thousand a year worse off?

Mr Morrison interjecting—

Mr Pyne interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer and the Leader of the House will cease interjecting.

Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The fundamental assumption that the member opposite makes is that grandparents do not have a capacity to work or work more. We have a grandparent doing quite well in the chair to my right. We have grandparents on the opposite side of this House engaging in the workforce. As our population ages the workplace will be more and more full of grandparents.

One of the assumptions that we have made in devising this package is that human beings are not passive, that when their circumstances change they make decisions for themselves. What history has shown is that very often one of those decisions is to either engage or engage more in the workplace. The old-fashioned and ridiculous assumption that members opposite have is that if you are a single-parent carer or a grandparent carer then your engagement with the workforce has somehow ended, that it is over, that your life is over and all that is left for you is caring. That is an assumption that we have never shared.

What this is all about and what is at the hart of everything that we are doing in this package here is creating incentives for workplace engagement. Of the 1.3 million—

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Isaacs will cease interjecting.

Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Of the 1.3 million FTBB families, 3,700 of those are registered as grandparent carers. They are the people who are formally legally guardians of children. As I noted in the question previously, there is a whole other cohort who are actually looking after children and do not benefit at all from FTBB, because we find it as a government and you found it as a government very difficult to identify their status as a carer. It is very often natural parents who have little to do with the children that are receiving the funds. That is a real problem. The problem of 3,700 people having a greater incentive and having a government trying to enable them to enter the workforce is a much smaller problem. But, if it is a problem that you wish to discuss with me, that kumbaya hand of friendship is open.

The member opposite is from a generation that makes assumptions about grandparents and about their capacity to work.

Opposition members interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Members will cease interjecting.

Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A whole generation of Australians now see grandparents engaging in the workplace. That is an assumption that we carry through because there has to be a system for greater engagement. (Time expired)