CHILDCARE SERVICES

Adjourned debate on motion of Mr Hamilton-Smith:

That this house establish a select committee to inquire into and report upon the availability and affordability of childcare services in South Australia and, in particular—

(a) the types of childcare services presently available across the state;

(b) the current and future need for childcare services in South Australia;

(c) federal, state and local government capital investment, concessions, rebates, subsidies, means testing arrangements and out of pocket costs to families;

(d) the impact of regulation, accreditation and other quality control arrangements across each level of government upon the quality and costs of care;

(e) the impact of workforce management and remuneration arrangements;

(f) training requirements and capabilities;

(g) competitive neutrality issues between private and non-private childcare providers, including taxation issues, federal, state and local government charges and regulatory fairness; and

(h) options within existing funding parameters for improving the choices available to families, reducing childcare costs and making more efficient use of taxpayer and private investment and funding.

(Continued from 1 May 2013.)

Mr BROCK (Frome) (11:23): I would just like to quickly talk on this select committee being proposed by the member for Waite. I think the select committee on childcare services in South Australia would be a great, advantageous thing to look at the whole system of childcare operations across the whole state.

In my electorate, we have various childcare centres, and some of them are operated by fairly large consortiums. Others are operated by small groups, which then makes it very hard because they are not on equal footing for funding and also there are issues with the cost factor for the people who have to put their children in those childcare centres. The select committee would also enable the media and the public to make some comments in regard to this. I think far too often in the parliamentary system we debate it within the chambers and we really do not go out and ask for public consultation and for the public to get involved and put in submissions.

I have been on a few select committees, and I have found them very advantageous. We get all the information from a wide range of sources—and I am talking about the Select Committee on the Grain Handling Industry, which was one of the greatest learning opportunities from my point of view. We identified lots of issues we would not have discovered had we been debating it within this chamber, so I certainly endorse this committee.

Over the years, governments of all persuasions—whether it is the Labor side or the Liberal side—have also tied up childcare providers with wave after wave of regulations and red tape. This has been great, we need to have the red tape there, but I think we have gone over the fence with it, quite frankly. The aim has been to lift the quality of care, but the result has been to close down and make it very hard to operate some of the facilities out there.

In Port Pirie, for argument's sake, we have one centre which was the old ABC Learning Centre. They came in and decimated the private centre operating behind the Pirie West Primary School. They found it very hard to be able to operate and, as we all know, the ABC Learning Centres went into receivership, but it certainly did not make it very easy for the community itself. The other issue I have is the operating hours of some of these facilities and also the remuneration.

As to the impact of regulation, accreditation, and other quality control arrangements across each level of government upon the quality and the costs of the care, the more we have, the more the cost goes up. That is a big issue out there for people, especially in regional areas, who are struggling to be able to get employment for a start and, when they do get employment, they have to go out and work because they cannot afford to have only one breadwinner.

The other issue is that the federal, state and local government capital investment, concessions and rebates also need to be looked at, and it is a real issue for the communities out there. In relation to the impact of workforce management and remuneration arrangements, training requirements and capabilities, again we have heard in the media just recently about the issues that are confronting our children in schools.

These children who are left in the childcare centres are really very young, and we must ensure that we have the best people out there looking after them so that we can go to work with our minds at rest and certain that everything is fine. Also, as to the choices available for families, I have spoken to the member for Waite and I am fully supportive of having a select committee and, if the select committee ever gets up, I would certainly be putting my hand up or putting in a submission. I certainly will support this when it comes to a final decision.

Mr PEGLER (Mount Gambier) (11:28): I certainly support this motion. I believe that these parliamentary committees certainly do a great job for the parliament and for the people of this state. Through these committees, politicians can get a much better understanding of how various things work within the state. A committee investigating the availability and affordability of childcare services within the state is a great move forward, and I will certainly be supporting the motion.

When my children were in child care, I was on the board of that childcare centre, and I know that probably the two biggest issues always are the costs of the child care and the quality of the child care, and that is very much a balancing act. You can have childcare centres with all the bells and whistles, but nobody can afford them, or you can have childcare centres that provide adequate care for our children and are affordable. I think through a committee like this we can reach that balance within this state, so I certainly support the motion.

Mr GRIFFITHS (Goyder) (11:29): I also wish to support the member for Waite's motion and I recognise the morals behind it. Having previously been involved in a select committee that looked at family-friendly situations—and the Hon. Grace Portolesi (then as a backbencher) was the chair of that committee—you actually find out a lot of information. It is obvious to me, no matter where you are, whether regionally based or metropolitan based, that the ability to care for our children and still allow either a time out for a parent or a work opportunity for a parent is a really key thing for the future of the state's economy. From my point of view, I think the motion is quite detailed. It gives some very specific guidelines for a select committee to look at, and it is a good motion.

I will give an example of a local issue that has highlighted the need for this level of work to be undertaken, and it is in Kadina on northern Yorke Peninsula. There is a community-run childcare facility there, which has been in existence for about 30 years. It is operated absolutely and predominantly by the mums, who are volunteers, and most of them work obviously, which is why their child uses that childcare facility. They have had a lot of challenges financially over the years. They are very lucky to have a peppercorn lease from the Department for Education for the use of a facility, but it has been a great struggle for them to remain financially viable in recent years.

The challenge for them has come about from the fact that a private investor has come in and provided a facility on the other side of town, and I level no criticism at all at the private operators of that facility. Indeed, it is modern, up to date and provides good facilities for the children, and gives great confidence to the parents about the way in which those kids are cared and provided for. However, it has highlighted to me the challenges that exist when you have a town, which in this case has about 4,000 people, and two facilities that are structured very differently.

For the long-term group that has been there for 30 years, they have been in real financial difficulties, and it is not because they are poor managers, because they are actually quite good at this. I have had some good discussions with executive committee members and they held a public meeting in Kadina not that long ago where they tried to gather some support. They have had some challenges financially. Before the private provider was established they were receiving a grant of $32,000 per year, which allowed them to partially subsidise some of the costs associated with the facility. When the private provider moved in that money was no longer available because there was competition in the community and it has put enormous pressure on them.

They have worked very hard to upgrade the facilities, keep the children safe, provide children with a balanced diet, rest opportunities and learning opportunities, so I would never level criticism at the community-run centre either, but it shows that the parliament requires information to be available to it to make the right decisions for the future. The only way to have a collective level of intelligence that is able to highlight the issues that exist, make some recommendations for some improvements, talk to operators and try to make some beneficial changes for the future is by the select committee.

It disappoints me, when I heard in a previous contribution from the government, that it is probably not going to support this, because I do not believe it is a political move from the member for Waite. This is an issue that he has a long-term interest in, having previously been a provider and an owner of these structures across two states. It shows that we have to forget the political stuff associated with things sometimes and do what is best for the state, and I do truly believe that this select committee, which will have representatives from all parties, will work diligently and try to only come up with recommendations that will improve the state. By doing so, we improve the quality of care for our children and the lives of people who live here, so I am fully supportive of this motion and I will be disappointed to hear of any other person who says no against it.

Debate adjourned on motion of Mrs Geraghty.