Core Value FAMILY
Family First believes in supporting families to care for their children in their own homes. We believe the extensive push to place all children in industrialised institutional care is harmful to children and society. Family First seeks to support families where both parents need to work with the broadest range of options for choosing the best care for their children.
Family First will seek to support families as follows:
- Amend the childcare subsidy to allow for parents to choose the best care option for their children;
- Best care options will include a grandparent, other family members, a babysitter service, a nanny or au pair service, home daycare, or childcare;
- Where care is provided in the child’s home the provider of care is required to be registered for payments but NOT regulated as a childcare provider;
- Care provided by a family member or grandparent in their home does not require regulation as a childcare provider;
- All working with children checks are required for all carers regardless of location.
Family Tax Benefit (Parenting Payment)
Family First believes parents caring for their own children at home results in the best outcomes for children, families and the broader society. We believe parents should be able to afford to care for their own children.
Family First will seek to provide families with support to have a stay at home parent by:
- Simplifying the FTB to be easier to access by removing the convoluted part A and part B and making a single Parenting Payment available to all low and middle income earners.
- Amending the system to recognise the value of families having two parents by increasing payments to married couples;[1]
- Recognising the work involved and benefit to society of stay at home parents by increasing the payments to a flat per child payment that is the equivalent of the full child care subsidy paid to child care centres (currently $180 per child per day);
- Increase the income threshold to $200,000 per household to provide for more middle income families to be able to choose to have a parent stay at home with their children.
Vehicle Rebates
- Provide a minimum $200 per year registration rebate for families requiring a vehicle with a seating capacity of six or more.
- Refund the GST on vehicles with more than 6 seats when used privately for families of 5 or more.
[1] Currently the highest benefit is paid to single mothers which discourages low-income families from getting married and living together. Also, where both parents are welfare recipients they receive less if living together or married.