QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

Senator WATT (Queensland—Minister for the Environment and Water) (14:47): Thanks, Senator Grogan. This latest pay increase for aged-care workers means that, since 2022, a registered nurse on the most common pay level will have seen their pay increase by more than $36,000 a year, while an enrolled nurse in aged care will have seen their wage go up by almost $32,000 per year.

Our aged-care nurses do an incredible job, and they deserve every dollar of this pay rise that Labor is delivering, just like our amazing early childhood educators, who've also received pay rises from this government over the past few years. The truth is that the only barrier to further wage rises for those or other workers in Australia is a Liberal-One Nation coalition government, because, when asked if these pay rises for female care workers were necessary, Senator Hanson said, 'Didn't they get a pay rise not so long ago?' and then added, 'Do we even need these services?' That's the kind of attitude that One Nation and their Liberal counterparts have towards Australian working people.

It would mean lower wages and a harder life for Australian workers, and we are not going to stand for it. The PRESIDENT: Thank you, Minister. Senator Canavan.