Extra Two Weeks of Paid Parental Leave For Childcare Deal

There will be an extra two weeks of paid parental leave for families as the Turnbull government fastens together some welfare measures to save billions of dollars.

The proposed cuts to family tax benefits were also weakened in a bid to secure Senate support for its childcare reforms.

The upper house also blocked an earlier move to scrap end-of-year payments for Family Tax Benefits A and B to pay for the child care measures.

Now, the government has agreed to raise family tax benefit payments by about $20 every fortnight to compensate families for the loss of their annual supplement.

Social Services Minister Christian Porter told parliament while introducing the legislation that a majority seemed agreeable that the child care package was highly desirable. “While the changes to family payments in this bill will pay for the (childcare) package, they will also simplify the family tax benefit system and enable us to provide more money on a fortnightly basis to those families who need it the most,” he said.

Key crossbench senator Nick Xenophon also told ABC TV that the measures were for the better. “There is a lot to negotiate, but I’m pleased to see that the government has moved on a number of fronts and I think that it certainly is an improved package compared to what it was a few months ago,” he said.

However, Opposition families spokeswoman Jenny Macklin said families, new parents and pensioners would be worse off under the changes. “We think the government is going to hurt millions of Australian families with these cuts,” she told reporters in Canberra.

Families on FTB A would be $200 worse off for each eligible child, and those on FTB B would be $350 a year worse off as a family. Pensioners would also lose their $14-a-fortnight energy supplement, while 70,000 new parents would be affected by the parental leave changes. “They will have to spend either less time at home with their newborn baby or have their standard of living reduced,” Ms Macklin said.

The maximum number of weeks of government-provided paid parental leave will now be 20 weeks from 18 weeks. Paid parental leave changes would be effective nine months after the bill passes, so women who are already pregnant don’t miss out.

Source: News.com.au