Coalition shock: MP says something sensible about Childcare
From the Sydney Morning Herald article: Kelly’s plea to PM: fix child-care
A former minister and a close ally of Prime Minister John Howard has urged the Federal Government to scrap the “shambles” of a child-care system and start from scratch to build a national policy.
High-profile western Sydney MP Jackie Kelly said Treasurer Peter Costello should spend the $12 billion government surplus “wisely” by fixing the child-care crisis rather than spending it on tax cuts.
Ministers should also stop “doing their own thing” and work together to respond to the escalating problem, she said. “We need a cohesive approach.” Ms Kelly said the system of care needed to be treated by all governments “in the same way they treat male-dominated issues”.
“We shouldn’t have the Treasurer with a 30 per cent rebate solution, [Employment Minister] Kevin Andrews saying women should negotiate [for child care in their workplaces] and [Family Minister] Kay Patterson saying other things,” she said. “And we need [Education Minister] Brendan Nelson to start taking an interest in preschools.
“They all need to say, ‘OK, how can we do this?’ At the moment, they are just coming out with policies and asking women to fit in with them.”
Great. Hooray. Somebody in the government talking about childcare in a sensible, cohesive kind of way, rather than the old Howard/Costello approach of making the kids cheaper to run.
Jackie Kelly Speech to Fisher-Price Childcare Awards
SMH article: Kelly’s plea to PM: fix child-care
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