Gladys Liu (Chisholm, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

With the nationwide vaccine rollout ensuring a safe return of children to child care and school, kids in my electorate of Chisholm, from Box Hill to Glen Waverley, are now back where they should be, and that is in the classroom preparing for the challenges of tomorrow. The flurry of activity that always accompanies the end of the school year serves as a reminder, if ever we needed one, of the need to secure the future of our younger generations. This means ensuring that the economy is robust and primed for growth, which, as sensible economic managers, a Liberal government will always be best placed to do. It means putting together, as I know the Minister for Education and Youth is doing, a national curriculum that prepares our kids for working life and instils pride in our nation while continuing to promote a balanced and realistic view of our history. It also means constantly working to improve the health outcomes of Australian children. In that sense, I wholeheartedly agree with the sentiment of the member for Macarthur's motion.

As a mother of two children, I'm proud that the Morrison government has always been committed to improving the health and wellbeing of our kids and recognises the critical importance of doing so in not just the first 1,000 days, but the first 2,000 days of life. We know that many chronic health problems in adulthood, such as obesity, heart disease, diabetes and mental health issues begin in early childhood. We also know that the health of a child starts even before birth, with the health of parents pre conception and during pregnancy affecting the health of the baby at birth, and through their early years.

Support for parents and children in the early years is recognised in all four pillars of the government's Long Term National Health Plan. In particular, just last month we launched the National Children's Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy. Recognised as a world first, the strategy considers mental health and wellbeing outcomes for children from birth to 12 years of age. Additionally, the consultation draft of Australia's Primary Health Care 10 Year Plan 2022-2032 highlights the importance of reform through primary care to support pregnant women and young families to improve health in the first 2,000 days. Furthermore, the government is developing the National Preventive Health Strategy, which outlines the overarching long-term approach to prevention in Australia over the next 10 years. The strategy recognises the value of health and wellbeing at all stages of life and emphasises the significance of prevention from the preconception period through to the early years of life. It includes an overarching aim that focuses on providing children with the best start in life.

In my electorate of Chisholm we have young people from all backgrounds, and that's why I have a particular interest in another of our government's key initiatives, the 2020-2030 National Action Plan for the Health of Children and Young People. The action plan aims to ensure that Australian children and young people from all walks of life have the same opportunities to fulfil their potential and the same chance of achieving a healthy life. The health of children and young people in Australia is of fundamental importance to all Australians, and this government is committed to ensuring that all our young people have a safe, certain and healthy future.

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