STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS

Ms SITOU (Reid) (13:53): If you were to ask any parent what matters most in those first few months with a newborn, they will tell you it is sleep and time. Unfortunately, we can't legislate for sleep. I wish we could.

But what we can deliver is time—time to bond, time to care. From 1 July, Labor is delivering 26 weeks of paid parental leave, because we back families and workers. Not everyone in this place agrees.

Senator Hanson has had several goes at explaining her opposition to paid parental leave, and each time she proves the same point. She simply doesn't understand it. Paid parental leave is not welfare; it's smart economic policy.

It keeps parents connected to their workplace and boosts workforce participation because, to qualify, you need to be working before your child is born. This is about supporting parents to stay in the workforce. And the evidence is clear.

Eighty per cent of employers who offer paid parental leave report increased productivity. That's why businesses and families back it. When Senator Hanson talks about winding it back, she's attacking workers' rights, holding women back and making it harder for families.

Fifteen years ago, Labor introduced Australia's first government Paid Parental Leave scheme, and now we're strengthening it.