Don Farrell (SA, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and Urban Water) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Nash for her question. When we are starting to talk about what this government has done it is important to make the comparison with what the previous government, your government, did in respect of this issue. Senator Nash, I know you do not like talking about the sorts of things you did to working families when your government was in power, particularly Work Choices. It will not go into that issue, but I will go to what your government was doing in terms of the child care rebate. Under the previous government the maximum child care rebate cap was $4,354. This government increased the cap to $7,500, so that is an increase of 72 per cent and some $3,146 more than under your government. This government introduced quarterly payments of the child care rebate to families and, from July 2011, fortnightly rebate payments, increasing support for families. The government will continue to cover 50 per cent of families' out-of-pocket childcare costs up to a capped maximum of $7,500 per child per year. The government is also providing improved support for parents and jobless families to transition and income support for employment by promoting increased take-up and indexation of jobs, education and training childcare fee assistance as of July 2012.