Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2025-2026 Consideration in Detail – Education

During my 2024 consideration-in-detail speech as shadow minister for early childhood education and care, my opening line was this: ‘It’s been two years, three budgets and I haven’t met a single Australian who is better off under Labor.’ Here we are in the same position, on the same downhill spiral under this government, and the question is: are Australians safer and are they more secure than they were when Labor took office? The answer is a categorical no, because the reality is Australians always suffer under Labor.

They can see through the thinly veiled lies and the carefully crafted messages from Labor’s best spin doctors. Labor promised cheaper power, more homes, free visits to the doctor and lower taxes. But power prices continue to skyrocket, housing is more unaffordable than ever, out-of-pocket costs—well, they’re normal now, and new taxes are on the table. So it’s no wonder Australians feel disappointed in their prime minister, and rightly so. Australians expect better from their prime minister. They expect more, and they have every single right to feel let down.

Like many Australians, I’m deeply concerned about quality and about safety in our early learning centres. It seems like every night we turn on the news there’s a fresh example of alleged abuse or safety failures in our early learning centres. Just last week a centre in Sydney’s south-west was shut down amid alleged safety concerns. I will put on the record, however, that I do acknowledge the work of the minister and recognise the bipartisanship that has been demonstrated over recent months. While the minister may have met with his state and territory counterparts to agree on a plan, it’s concerning to see the level to which these poor examples of child safety have been allowed to spiral out of control before the government acknowledged that there was a problem and that a solution was needed. We simply cannot have a weak system where bad and evil people can find vulnerabilities to cause irreparable harm to children. Parents have lost faith in this government.

Whilst the Coalition does support the government’s approach to these child safety reforms, some big questions remain. How will the minister ensure each measure is implemented to ensure consistency across all states and territories? And who will be footing the bill? Something needs to be done now to protect our littlest learners, our most precious assets, and ensure they have a safe environment in which to thrive.

Families are not just waiting for this government to ensure their own children’s safety. They are still waiting for this government to provide some relief by bringing down the increasing cost of early childhood education and care, which has continued to rise and rise and rise under this government. In June the Daily Telegraph reported that nearly 20 suburbs in New South Wales alone were spending more than 40 per cent of their household income on child care. It’s no surprise that these suburbs are deemed regional, rural or remote, because Labor does not care about those communities. The government love to talk about no Australian being worse off under them, no child being left behind and how important access to early learning is for children and their parents, but what they conveniently forget to tell you is that those statements don’t apply to those who live in regional, rural or remote areas.

We know that, in many cases, children living in our regional areas are more likely to start developmentally behind when compared to children living in our major cities, yet this government has no plans to support children and their families in regional areas. With fees continuing to skyrocket and accessibility even more scarce, how does this government plan to deliver cost-of-living relief to families accessing early childhood education? What plans do you have to increase access for these families across Australia who are stuck on waiting lists? What about families in regional, rural and remote communities struggling to pay their bills? What’s your plan to ensure the safety of our littlest learners when they’re in care? You’ve killed the Australian dream of owning a home. You’ve crushed small business. You’re draining our regions dry, and you continue to provide no certainty to families. Australians deserve better than this half-baked and underwhelming Albanese Labor government.