Jacinta Collins (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I do not know why Senator Brandis is quite so excited about this issue, but perhaps he will speak later in the debate and we will be able to understand it. Let us go back to the facts of the matter. There was a forum today, as Senator Payne indicated. That forum represented another shift that has occurred in the early childhood agenda under the Rudd government. That shift is more adequate and comprehensive consultation with the sector, as was outlined in this place in question time and in the other place in question time today. The Parliamentary Secretary for Early Childhood Education and Children, Ms McKew, has been undertaking extensive consultations across the sector to deal with the types of problems that Senator Hanson-Young has been referring to. That we have taken the opportunity today to focus on the most pressing and immediate issue is not, Senator Payne, a pretence. It is using the consultation processes that have been established to undertake the type of consultation that Senator Hanson-Young is pointing out as being critical and important at this time.

That Senator Payne claims that there is no evidence of consultation in the sector is probably more reflective of her limited dealings with the sector than anything else. So let me tell her the other thing that was announced by the minister today in question time. The Deputy Prime Minister announced that an expression of interest process has commenced to ensure that the receiver has the best available range of options for considering the future operation of ABC Learning Centres. She has encouraged the parties, be they for-profit or not-for-profit ones, to register their interest in participating with the receiver on the future of ABC. Once the review process has identified the likely future arrangements for each centre, the receiver, working with the government, will map and sort the registrations of interest against identified local needs. The government is responding to clear public interest. We have a contingency plan that involves maintaining these services for two months with the $22 million, as has been indicated, and also a process, which the Deputy Prime Minister outlined today in question time, for receiving expressions of interest and for mapping against identified local needs as will be required to ensure that delivery of service occurs into the new year.

As senators would be aware, the forum held today involved a dozen peak national childcare organisations. The organisations that Senator Hanson-Young referred to will eventually be communicated with and consulted in relation to communication back to government. Also, as I said, there is this new process that the Deputy Prime Minister outlined today to receive expressions of interest. That will be critical to ensuring that community needs are catered for in this very pressing and urgent situation.

Since I have a little more time than I anticipated, I will go back to the points that I was raising before—and Senator Brandis, in particular, seemed to want to hear more on this issue. I suspect he will be mildly amused that in fact I will spend some of this time quoting what Stephen Mayne said, in a Lateline interview that occurred with Tony Jones in February of this year, because I think this is the best synopsis of the problems with ABC child care.