Thursday, 10 September 2026

 Rikkie-Lee TYRRELL (Northern Victoria) (12:45): (1484) My question is for the Minister for Children. I have previously raised in this house the significant travel burden placed on families living in Beulah to access kindergarten services. For three days out of the week, parents are travelling 25 minutes to Hopetoun, and this is putting real pressure on families. Minister, what is the government doing to ensure children in Beulah have adequate access to kindergarten?

 Lizzie BLANDTHORN (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Children, Minister for Disability) (12:45): I thank Ms Tyrrell for her question and for her continued advocacy on behalf of the Beulah community and indeed her constituents as a whole. I note that Ms Tyrrell has asked me questions in relation to this matter in the chamber previously, but I also want to thank Ms Tyrrell for the constructive way in which she has worked with me and my office in order to resolve the issues for the community of Beulah and ensure that we continue to deliver free three- and four-year-old kinder for the families of Beulah, which we know those opposite might oppose but Ms Tyrrell understands saves those in her community more than $5000 a year.

I am really pleased to be able to report to the house this afternoon that we will fund and upgrade the library room at Beulah Primary School and will also build brand new toilets for the kinder students at Beulah. For those children who are attending kindergarten, this will ensure that both a three-year-old and a four-year-old program can operate full time at Beulah, without families needing to travel to Hopetoun to access a service on those other days. This is a great outcome for Beulah Primary School and is a great outcome for the kinder families at Beulah, and it is what happens when people in this place work together in the best interests of children. This is what Labor governments do. We listen to communities. We work with those who are focused on delivering real outcomes for families, rather than just playing politics with it like those opposite who would cut free kinder. The Leader of the Opposition has written to me saying she would cut free kinder.

Melina Bath: On a point of order, President, this is not the time: question time is to respond to a question, not to attack the opposition.

The PRESIDENT: I will call the minister back to the question.

Lizzie BLANDTHORN: I would remind those in this house that what we are talking about here is the delivery of free three-year-old kinder and free four-year-old kinder. Thank you to Ms Tyrrell for the advocacy on behalf of her community, which will ensure that, despite what those opposite might hope for, we can continue to offer the families of Beulah free three-year-old and free four-year-old kinder in their home town.