Budget 2004: More help for some families
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Budget 2004: More help for some families “Stronger leadership and commitment from the Federal Government is needed if Australia is to be a nation which offers opportunities to all. Short term approaches and recycled funding won’t be enough for communities and families struggling with unemployment or accessing adequate housing” said Lin Hatfield Dodds, National Director of UnitingCare Australia. “Much of the Government’s new More Help for Families package is actively focussed on the provision of assistance to families in which two adults are working and juggling shared parenting responsibilities” said Ms Hatfield Dodds “In contrast, single parent families or families in which no-one is employed are left behind again. Passive income support measures simply do not provide the assistance families living on the edge need to overcome the many barriers they face to participation”. “While UnitingCare Australia welcomes the additional 40,000 childcare places announced tonight, we question their real value when it is extremely difficult to recruit and retain staff in areas of need. Inadequate pay is a critical issue, particularly in rural and regional Australia. Right now, we can’t pay enough to recruit workers in outback Queensland and Western Australia. One of our services is at risk of closing in Meekatharra (WA) because staff can earn more packing shelves in Woollies than caring for children. In Northern Queensland we would need to charge families at least $100 more each week to be able to provide in home care” said Ms Hatfield Dodds. “The crisis in childcare is not just about unmet demand and won’t be solved by the creation of additional child care places alone. We need leadership from the Federal Government to address the workforce barriers to the provision of quality, affordable and accessible child care programs.” “The early childhood package rolls two major Government strategies together: the new phase of the Stronger Families and Communities Strategy and much of the Early Childhood Agenda. Long term commitment is required to support vulnerable families and to regenerate disadvantaged communities” said Ms Hatfield Dodds. “Communities will continue to struggle to build solutions to their longer term problems unless funding is available to transform surviving into thriving.” Contacts: |
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