QUALITY CHILDCARE MUST BE AFFORDABLE
The Member for Berowra, Philip Ruddock MP said today that while parents want quality childcare, any changes to quality standards must be affordable and must deliver real and positive outcomes for the whole of the childcare sector.
“I welcome the launch of Early Childhood Australia’s “Hands up for Quality Campaign” and while this campaign is well intentioned, it really is time for the Federal Government to realise the costs to parents of their childcare reforms,” Mr Ruddock said.
“The fact is: higher quality comes at a premium price. Parents should decide if they are really unhappy with their current childcare, whether or not they are willing to pay an extra $100 a week to make it that little bit better.”
“The Rudd Government has failed to recognise how the changes will impact on different sectors of the industry – particularly the private small businesses that provide the majority of childcare in this country.”
“It is very clear that parents are not being told how much costs are expected to rise. In fact, they are being misled into thinking that the rise will be minimal. That is clearly not going to be the case with some estimates in the industry ranging from increases of $20 to $40 a day.”
“Any increase in fees at this time when we have rising unemployment and economic uncertainty will be a burden on working families, and this has to be balanced against the need for a high-quality childcare system,” Philip Ruddock said.