The Greens will move to establish a Senate Inquiry into the safety and quality of early childhood education and care as soon as Parliament resumes, after what they and the sector have described as a failure to act with urgency on a system in crisis.
Australian Greens spokesperson for early childhood education and care, Senator Steph Hodgins-May, says years of neglecting the system has left children at risk and families without confidence.
In the last sitting week, the Greens supported a Bill allowing government subsidies to be cut from centres that repeatedly fail to meet quality standards. But Senator Hodgins-May told the Senate these were "band-aid fixes" that would do little to lift quality:
"Tinkering with the subsidy system will not keep our children safe. We need more than reactive tools to act after harm occurs - we need leadership to prevent that harm in the first place."
The proposed inquiry would examine the regulatory system, workforce, and whether the current subsidy model supports high-quality care. It would aim to deliver recommendations to keep children safe and also inform long-term reforms towards universal early learning - a goal the Government has outsourced to Deloitte at a cost of millions and a delay of years.
The push comes as a rapid review into Victoria's early learning system is completed and a NSW parliamentary inquiry is underway. The Greens say a Senate inquiry would bring this work together nationally to keep kids safer in every state and territory.
As stated by Australian Greens spokesperson for early childhood education and care, Senator Steph Hodgins-May:
"We've tried repeatedly to work with this government on what should be a once-in-a-generation reform of early learning, but with no sign of urgency to fix this broken system, we're taking matters into our own hands.
"This morning, the Prime Minister couldn't offer a real plan for fixing the childcare crisis - just another round of patchwork meetings while children remain at risk and families keep paying the price. It's not good enough.
"A Senate Inquiry will shine a proper light on a system in crisis, expose the conditions enabling abuse and neglect, and make strong recommendations for real reform.
"The sector and families are calling for change now. The Prime Minister says he wants childcare to be the legacy he's remembered for - we urge him to work with the Greens to make this vision a reality."
