The Greens have said that returning to expensive fee-paying childcare today will harm families, disproportionately impact women and threaten the viability of early learning as the Covid-19 pandemic continues.

The federal government should extend free childcare and ensure all early childhood education and care workers are eligible for JobKeeper payments.

Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Australian Greens spokesperson for Education, said:

“It’s downright cruel and shortsighted to scrap free childcare before practically every other Covid-19 support measure.

In another damning report, the Australian National Audit Office has found that the government does not adequately assess conflict of interests risks or monitor compliance with the Lobbying Code of Conduct. 
 

The Greens will today introduce a bill in the Senate that will prohibit political donations from certain industries, and impose a cap on all other donations.
 
Greens Senate Leader and spokesperson on Democracy, Senator Larissa Waters said:
 
“We must put a stop to the rorts and favours for mates that are rife under the Morrison Government.
 
“Since 2012, the Liberal, National and Labor parties have received over one hundred million dollars from corporate donors. And we’ve seen those donors benefit from favourable policy outcomes and project approvals.

The House of Representatives will today be forced to debate the implementation of a national integrity commission, after the Senate expressed frustration over further delays.

Following further allegations of corruption within the ALP, Leader of the Australian Greens Adam Bandt MP and Greens Democracy Spokesperson Senator Larissa Waters have today urged the Australian parliament to pass a Greens bill - which has already passed the Senate - to create a federal integrity watchdog through the House of Representatives.

The Greens have criticised the Morrison Government's plans for a stacked inquiry into domestic and family violence, saying more funding is needed for frontline services, not another inquiry which is designed to endorse the government's inadequate response to the national crisis. 

Greens Senate Leader and Spokesperson on Women, Senator Larissa Waters, said: 

Today's ABS Household data survey provides further confirmation that the impacts of COVID crisis are falling disproportionately to women. The Greens are calling on the National Cabinet to ensure that addressing these disparities is at the forefront of any recovery plans.

The ABS results reveal that women are almost three times as likely as men to have looked after their children full-time on their own during the crisis.

Responding to today's reported deferral of legislation to enable a federal integrity commission, the Greens will push to bring on for debate and vote legislation to establish a national anti-corruption watchdog when Parliament resumes in June.

A Greens integrity commission bill has already passed the Senate with support from Labor and the crossbench and could pass the House if as few as two backbench government MPs cross the floor, as they have threatened to do. The Bill passed in September of last year.

Greens Leader Adam Bandt has pledged to fight the government’s gas push laid out in the Technology Road Map Discussion Paper released by the government today.

Mr Bandt also said the leaked COVID Commission push for a gas-rush shows the corruption of process the government is using to develop a plan for manufacturing.

“We need to be ending Australia’s addiction to toxic methane gas not feeding it,” Mr Bandt said.

“Coal, oil and gas are the primary cause of the climate crisis. We can't solve the climate emergency and economic crisis by pouring gas on the fire.”

Young people will be guaranteed a job, secure income, and free education under a new Greens recovery plan to restart the economy and build ‘a better normal’ after the coronavirus economic shock.

The vision for a debt-financed recovery reaffirms the government’s role in responding to the crisis, and rejects the austerity approaches offered by the Liberal and Labor parties, charting a course for a government-led recovery that extends Australia’s world-class social services, instead of slashing funding for education, healthcare, and the environment.

The Greens will introduce a motion in the Senate calling for Federal Parliament to sit in June to strengthen democracy and address ongoing issues of national importance.

“The Covid crisis response and the plan for recovery demand more transparency in government decision-making. The Senate Covid Committee plays a critical role, but is no substitute for full parliamentary oversight," said Senator Larissa Waters, Greens Senate Leader and spokesperson on Democracy.