Families across the electorate still need to make the switch by 2 July, or they could miss out on receiving the new child care subsidy. Many families will be hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, better off each year under these reforms, but they need to make the switch to the new system now.

I urge local families as well as child care and early learning providers to visit www.education.gov.au/childcare as soon as they can. Even if your circumstances are likely to change before 2 July, just get online and get into the new system. Updates can be made easily at any point via your Centrelink online account via myGov.

If you require assistance, you can phone the helpdesk on 136 150. There is plenty of staff on the help desk and call-wait times are currently very short.

More support for families is just weeks away, but the switchover to the new system isn’t automatic. The Coalition Government’s reforms are set to benefit almost one million families nation-wide and it’s estimated around 230,000 families will increase their workforce participation.

Reforms include an extra $2.5 billion investment that will mean more subsidies for families working the most and for families earning the least, scrapping the annual rebate cap for most families as well as an hourly rate cap to keep downward pressure on fees.

Around 489,000 families across Australia still need to update their details and switch over in time for the new system. 

Supporting regional students

I’m pleased to advise regional students and schools across the Parkes electorate will benefit from measures announced in this year’s Budget.

The Coalition Government is providing $53.9 million to increase the number of regional students who are eligible for Youth Allowance by raising the parental income cut-off for the regional workforce self-supporting independence criteria.

It is estimated an extra 2,300 students from regional Australia will be eligible for Youth Allowance as a result of these changes.

A further $38.1 million will be provided to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students who need to travel away from home for education. From 1 January, it will also be easier for institutions to offer scholarships approved under ABSTUDY.

The Government is working to address the challenges faced by students in regional and remote areas such as the Parkes electorate.

The changes ensure students are well supported to travel between home and boarding school and are encouraged to finish their schooling.

The Government has also accepted all 11 recommendations of the Independent Review into Regional, Rural and Remote Education to support more regional and remote students to get an education.

Regional and remote students need to have the same access to education and the same opportunities as kids who live in big cities. The cost of student accommodation is a significant issue for rural and remote families. The measures announced in this year’s Budget will help ease the pressure on regional families who are working hard to make sure their children get the best education possible.

Cutting red tape by nearly $6 billion

The Coalition Government’s Regulatory Reform Agenda has cut compliance costs for individuals, businesses and community organisations by almost $6 billion since 2013.

The recently released Annual Regulatory Reform Report highlights the Coalition’s record in making it easier for businesses and households to comply with regulations.

Between 1 January 2016 and 30 June 2017, the Government took decisions to reduce the regulatory burden on businesses by more than $800 million a year. The biggest single regulatory saving, worth $444m, came from the abolition of Labor’s Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal.

This Tribunal was set up by Bill Shorten as Workplace Relations Minister in 2012 as part of a deal between Labor and the unions. It effectively pushed tens of thousands of owner-drivers – many small family businesses — to the brink of collapse, rendering them uncompetitive with big union-dominated trucking companies.

The Coalition Government is committed to ensuring that our regulatory environment makes life easier for businesses and households, encouraging growth and innovation in the economy. This has played a big part in our record of creating more than a million new jobs since 2013. 

Other initiatives underway, such as the National Business Simplification Initiative, will deliver savings for businesses through simpler regulation and digitalisation of government services, so they can focus more on growing their business and less on red tape.