politics

Labor to reverse Coalition's paid parental leave cuts.

In what is a clear signal that families will be the key battle ground in the looming election, Labor will this morning announce a commitment to reverse cuts to paid parental leave made by the Abbott-Turbull Government.

It is widely expected that Prime Minister will ask the Governor-General to call an election for July 2 when he visits Government House later this morning, making for a 56 day election, the longest election campaign in Australia since the 60’s.

In a statement, the ALP said, “each year 80,000 families with new babies will be as much as $11,800 better off than they would be under the Liberals”.

On Mother’s Day last year, then Treasurer Joe Hockey announced that mothers who had access to workplace provided parental leave would no longer be eligible for that government’s modest paid parental lave – 18 weeks at the minimum wage.

He infamously referred to the practice as double dipping.

It represented a stunning turnaround for the Liberals, who had up to six months prior to that maintained a strong commitment to providing mothers six months paid leave – widely seen as Tony Abbott’s ‘signature policy.’

The ALP’s statement this morning read: “Labor’s paid parental leave scheme gives eligible new parents 18 weeks’ pay at the National Minimum Wage.

“This is a modest and affordable scheme that appropriately targets assistance to women on low and middle incomes. More than 75 per cent of parents receiving Labor’s paid parental leave scheme are on incomes of less than $70,000 a year.”