Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Walker for the question and I just want to remark how proud we are to have her as a member of our Senate team—a younger woman who has joined a majority-women federal government—and we're so pleased to have her, along with all of my colleagues on this side, who, regardless of their gender, see the point of having gender equality at the centre of our economic and social policy thinking. We have done this since being elected to government, as we recognise that gender equality is good for everybody. It's good for the community. It's good for business. It's good for government.

That's why we have, since coming to government, dealt with structural barriers—barriers that in effect perpetuate gender inequality. We deal with some of those big, significant areas of inequality, like violence against women and children, where we have put significant investments but also, importantly, the policy work to underpin and guide those investments. They're areas like extending paid parental leave, which will reach 26 weeks by 2026, and paying super on that PPL, recognising that women, as primary carers coming in and out of the paid workforce, are often taking an economic hit by pursuing their unpaid caring role. We're making child care cheaper and guaranteeing at least three days of subsidised care a week so women and their families can have the choice they need about how much they work and when they work. Increasing wages in historically underpaid feminised industries, such as aged care and child care, is already making a difference, with more men seeking employment in areas like aged care. Our women's health package is for the first time investing hundreds of millions of dollars to make sure women get access to not only the treatment but the time they need to deal with some of those health issues that are specific to women.