We support the basic premise of the Bill, that greater investment is needed to increase the duration of parental leave payments, and that there needs to be improved flexibility for parents returning to work. We note that a similar Bill led by the same member has been before the House in 2012, which The Salvation Army also supported, and that a Government Bill is presently before select committee which is investigating some other related issues.
We noted that overall paid parental leave reforms inherently only capture those who are in employment. The infants of beneficiaries for example, through no fault of their own do not receive the same financial support as infants born into working families. We asked the Committee to take an holistic approach to this matter.