Tuesday, 2 August 2022

 Ms THEOPHANOUS (Northcote) (13:14): Recently I was immensely proud to welcome the Premier to the electorate of Northcote, where we announced a once-in-a-generation reform to Victoria’s kinder and childcare system. At Alfred Nuttall kindergarten in Fairfield we gathered to outline the details of this transformational policy, which will deliver free kinder to every Victorian three- and four-year-old from 2023. As well as this we are introducing a universal pre-prep year, which will see our four-year-olds having access to 30 hours of play-based learning before they start school; we are opening 50 new low-cost government-run childcare centres; and we are attracting and retaining highly skilled educators. My daughters are three and four and attend a local kinder in Northcote. They absolutely adore their teachers and friends, and every day their little minds are exploding with new concepts and skills. Our Labor government sees the value of investing in early education, and these reforms are elevating it to a whole new level.

Of course this reform is not only about giving our kids the best start in life, this is truly groundbreaking economic reform as well. Childcare fees take a huge chunk out of household budgets, in some cases up to 25 per cent. Our reforms will save families up to $2500 per child per year, but critically they mean more parents are able to make the choice to go back to work after having a child. Parents should not be worse off after childcare costs are weighed up against extra wages, and we know that it is women who feel this impact most acutely. If we are serious about gender equality in our state, we need to make sure women have economic power and autonomy.