Kate Ellis has demonstrated an embarrassing incapacity to understand projections in budget papers, with her scaremongering today on childcare shortages based on data showing projected growth in available places rather than shortages.
Under the Turnbull Government over the last two years 150,000 new places have been filled by Australian children, while price growth has been constrained to levels much lower than when Labor was in power.
The Coalition has brought child care price increases down to around 5.2 per cent in the year to September 2015, well-below the 10 year September quarter average of 6.7 per cent and 7.4 per cent during Labor’s last term in office.
MYEFO projections indicate that under our childcare reforms an additional 300,000 places are expected to be created and in receipt of childcare support over the next three years.
Our reforms will provide more support to hard working families who need it most and end the mid-year cut out of child care assistance that currently plagues many families, while putting in place new measures to constrain fee growth. In doing so they will provide a more certain investment environment for child care providers.
The only threat to growth in child care places and a better deal for hard working families is Labor's continued failure to pass the savings required to fund our new investment in a better child care model.