Terry Young (Longman, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'm pleased to rise in support of the Family Assistance Legislation Amendment (Improving Assistance for Vulnerable and Disadvantaged Families) Bill 2020. I welcome the opportunity to speak today about the importance of child care and how the government is supporting child care, the childcare system and Australian families. The Morrison government's primary aim is to support families and the childcare sector during the COVID-19 crisis to ensure that quality early childhood education and care is available to vulnerable and disadvantaged children and families.

In my electorate of Longman there are nearly 100 childcare centres, supporting thousands of families and their children. I have had the pleasure to visit many of these centres, regularly engaging with the owners and staff and the families who use their services. I know just how hard these centres work to support families and maintain high-quality care for children in Longman. I know how tough it can be for disadvantaged children and families. Having my own children has taught me the importance of having a strong childcare sector. I want to take this opportunity to thank the childcare centres in my electorate and all across Australia that provide safe child care for Australian families. They do an outstanding job.

As Australian workplaces and businesses reopen and children return to classrooms, the demand for child care is increasing. As the Minister for Education, Dan Tehan, has said, the temporary Early Childhood Education and Care Relief Package has done its job. At the start of the COVID pandemic, the childcare sector saw a significant withdrawal of children from child care. We acted quickly to ensure childcare services would remain available, particularly for our essential workers, by introducing the temporary childcare relief package. We recognised the need to ensure that this vital sector remained open and viable. Our review of the package showed it achieved its objective of keeping services open and viable, with 99 per cent of around 13,400 services operational as at 8 May 2020. A survey also showed that attendance levels had increased 74 per cent as at the week of 11 May 2020. Representations from people across the sector, and from families and businesses in my own electorate, have told me that demand is returning to normal.

I believe that we need to look after our most disadvantaged children, and I know this bill delivers on strengthening the government's support for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children and families. The bill will amend provisions relating to the additional childcare subsidy and childcare subsidy in the 'A new tax system act of 1999' and the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) (Administration) Act 1999. This bill clearly shows that, when we return to the demand-driven childcare subsidy system on 13 July 2020, we are committed to improving access to child care for vulnerable and disadvantaged children and families and to cutting red tape that impacts providers, families and governments.

The childcare package has a generous safety net designed to provide higher subsidies to families experiencing financial difficulty. The additional childcare subsidies available for families under temporary financial hardship provide increased childcare fee assistance. A loss of income or employment and an inability to pay childcare fees are just some examples of circumstances for which families may be eligible.

The additional childcare subsidy is also available for families transitioning to work. The period of time a provider can apply for an additional childcare subsidy determination will be extended from 13 weeks up to 12 months for children under a long-term child protection order, such as those in foster care. This change recognises the support that vulnerable children need over longer periods. Other amendments will enable providers to apply to backdate a family's additional childcare subsidy beyond the current limit of 28 days up to 13 weeks in exceptional circumstances. Childcare providers will also be able to enrol children who are in foster care under an additional childcare subsidy from an initial period of up to 13 weeks, giving an individual foster family sufficient time to lodge their childcare subsidy claim and have it assessed by Services Australia. Existing provisions where providers are required to notify Services Australia when a child is no longer considered to be at risk will continue to apply.

The government has proactively engaged the childcare sector for feedback, and this bill strengthens our support for families and providers in response to feedback. I want to again take this opportunity to thank childcare providers across the country who provide safe and high-quality care for children. We are committed to supporting them and Australian families, particularly those most vulnerable during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We remain committed to supporting people through the transition, or the return, to the means-tested childcare subsidy. We are replacing one type of support package with another type of support package. From 13 July 2020 childcare services will receive approximately $2 billion in childcare subsidies and $708 million in transition payments, along with the means-tested parent contributions. Services are required to guarantee employment levels. We are also stopping fee increases during the transition and relaxing the activity test to relieve financial pressures on families who may be doing it tough. The federal government supports families by providing more than $8.3 billion a year through the childcare subsidy to help them with the cost of child care.

It is clear that the government is delivering on its goal to create a more affordable, accessible and flexible childcare system. I commend this bill to the House, because these reforms will benefit families and childcare providers across my electorate of Longman and will benefit people across Australia.

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