Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Technical Changes No. 2) Bill 2026
Ms WITTY (Melbourne) (17:54): I rise to speak in support of the Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Technical Changes No. 2) Bill 2026, and I want to begin with a story from an older Melburnian who contacted my office earlier this year. He was approaching 80 years of age. He had recently lost his wife after a long illness.
Like many families going through something like that, there had been medical costs, funeral expenses and all of the pressures that come with caring for somebody through a serious illness. Months earlier, he had lodged an application relating to his pension, but he still had no answer. He did not know how much longer he would need to wait.
Eventually, he contacted my office asking for help. After we raised the matter with Services Australia, the application was resolved and he received both his pension and the back payment he was entitled to receive. What has stayed with me is not simply the outcome; it was a reminder that, behind every application, every assessment and every process, there is a real person trying to navigate a difficult period in their life.
When someone is dealing with illness, caring responsibilities, the loss of a loved one or financial uncertainty, they are not thinking about legislative provisions, technical amendments, review mechanisms or administrative processes. They simply need the system to work. Since coming to government, the Albanese Labor government has been focused on strengthening Australia's social security system and ensuring it remains fair, accessible and responsive to the needs of Australians.
We understand that social security is more than a set of payments; it is one of the foundations of Australia's social safety net. Labor believes that support should be there when people need it. Support should be accessible, fair and delivered with dignity.
The Albanese Labor government has already acted to strengthen that support. Since coming to government in 2022, we have increased working-age and student payments, we have expanded eligibility for parenting payments, we have delivered substantial increases to Commonwealth rent assistance, we have strengthened paid parental leave and we have worked to restore confidence in the system Australians rely upon.
This is not just about the payment rates themselves. It is about whether people can access support in a reasonable way. It is about whether decisions are made properly.
It is about whether review rights are clear. It is about whether government services are working for the people who rely on them. This bill is another part of that work.
It is not a headline-grabbing reform. It is not about creating an entirely new payment or redesigning the social security system. Rather, it is about making sure the system Australians already rely upon continues to operate effectively, fairly and as parliament intended, because, when systems are operating properly, people receive support sooner.
When legislation reflects the way services are actually delivered, people encounter fewer barriers. When review processes are fair and accessible, people can have confidence in decisions that affect their lives. That is what this bill helps to achieve. and it is important work for communities like mine.
In Melbourne, more than 7,200 people receive the age pension, more than 4,400 people receive the disability support pension, nearly 7,800 people receive JobSeeker, thousands of local families rely on family tax benefit and more than 10,000 people hold a healthcare card. The social security system forms part of everyday life for thousands of people across my community.
For many people in Melbourne, these payments help keep a roof over their head. They help pay the rent. They help cover food costs, medicine, school costs, transport and bills.
They help people get through hard periods without being left behind. When we are debating legislation relating to social security, family assistance and child support, we are debating systems that directly affect thousands of Melburnian residents. One of the key objectives of this bill is ensuring support remains accessible and easy to use.
A good example is the change relating to advance payments. Advance payments are a practical form of support that many Australians already rely upon. They enable eligible recipients to access part of their entitlement as a lump sum and repay it through small deductions from future payments.
For somebody facing a large expense such as school costs, replacing an essential household item or paying their car registration, an advance payment can make an enormous difference. In 2024-25, around 2.7 million advance payments were granted. That figure alone demonstrates how important this option is.
The changes before the House provide legislative certainty for the current administration of advance payments. Without these changes, more people would need to call Services Australia or attend service centres to have applications assessed. That would increase delays, increase waiting times and make it harder for people to access support quickly.
Labor believes government services should reduce barriers, not create them. The ability to access an advance payment online may sound like a small thing, but, for someone facing an urgent bill, it can be the difference between getting through the week and falling further behind. This legislation helps avoid that outcome.
It is practical reform that improves access to support. The bill also contains important reforms related to the use of income information. While this might sound technical, the impact is very real.
The legislation enables Services Australia to use pre-issued income data supplied by the Australian Tax Office for family tax benefit, childcare subsidy and child support purposes. Using this information earlier means payments can be recalled sooner, assessments can be updated sooner and support can be provided using the most up-to-date information available.
It is good administration. It improves accuracy, it improves efficiency and it helps ensure people receive the right support at the right time. It also supports families who rely on a family tax benefit and the childcare subsidy.
This year, more than 1.2 million families with children will benefit from increases to the family tax benefit. When the government delivers support for families, the systems behind that support need to operate properly, too. Another constituent who contacted my office reminds us why fairness and review rights are so important.
This individual had been seeking a review related to a pension matter. The review process had been underway for a considerable period. During that time, financial pressures continued to grow.
The person believed they had missed out on support they were entitled to receive and simply wanted a fair outcome. Eventually, after further engagement between my office and Services Australia, the review was finalised and the constituent received a substantial back payment of pension entitlements. Again, that stands out as not only the final outcome but the importance of ensuring people have confidence in review processes—confidence that decisions are being reconsidered, confidence that new information can be taken into account and confidence that systems are capable of delivering their outcomes.
That is why the review measures contained within this legislation are important. The bill includes amendments relating to family tax benefit decisions before the Administrative Review Tribunal. These amendments allow decisions to be altered when new or previously unconsidered information becomes available so that review bodies are considering the most up-to-date version of a decision.
The bill also introduces important reforms relating to family tax benefit debt. These amendments establish review arrangements relating to decisions to offset tax reforms against family tax benefit debt. Importantly, they also create mechanisms that can assist where hardship issues arrive.
These changes respond to issues identified through tribunal processes and strengthen confidence in the fairness of the system. The bill also contains important improvements to the child support system. Child support arrangements play a critical role in supporting Australian children.
Parents need confidence that assessments are timely. They need confidence that calculations are accurate, and children should benefit from a system that operates efficiently. The amendments relating to child support income information and provisional income support those objectives by ensuring Services Australia can continue using information necessary to make accurate and timely assessments.
The legislation also includes amendments relating to paid parental leave super. These changes ensure that super contributions connected to paid parental leave are calculated correctly where adjustments occur after payments have been made through an employer. This builds on one of the most significant reforms this government has delivered for working families.
The Albanese Labor government has expanded paid parental leave to a full six months. We have made it more flexible for families and we have started paying super on paid parental leave, helping reduce the retirement income gap that affects many working parents. Families accessing the full entitlement can now receive almost $30,000 through the scheme, more than double what was available before Labor came to government.
Having delivered those reforms, it is important that the underlying systems are operating correctly. Parents should have confidence that super connected to their paid parental leave is calculated accurately and paid as intended. The bill also includes reforms related to urgent payments.
These changes align legislation with current service delivery arrangements and help reduce the number of times people need to contact Services Australia. That is another example of our government making services easier to use. People should not face unnecessary barriers when trying to access support, and government systems should be designed around the needs of the people who rely on them.
Across all of these measures, there is a common theme. This bill is about trust. Trust that social security systems are operating properly.
Trust that family assistance payments are administered fairly. Trust that children's support arrangements are accurate. And trust that government services are capable of responding to people's circumstances effectively.
In recent years, the government has worked to identify and resolve these issues. This legislation is another step in that process. It is careful work; it is detailed work; it is important work.
As representatives, we are responsible for not only creating new programs and new policies but also ensuring that systems Australians rely upon continue to work properly. The Albanese Labor government has strengthened support for families, pensioners, renters, carers, parents and people looking for work. This bill helps make sure the systems that deliver that support are accurate, accessible and fair.
As I prepared for this debate, I found myself thinking again about those two constituents, the older Australian who had recently lost his wife and was waiting for certainty about a pension application and the constituent who spent a long time waiting for the outcome of a review before finally receiving the support they were entitled to receive. Neither contacted my office asking for legislation reform.
Neither contacted my office asking for technical amendments. They contacted my office because they needed a system that worked, a system that was fair, a system that was accessible, a system that was accurate and a system they could trust. Ultimately, that is what this bill is about.
Behind every schedule in this bill are real Australians—people raising children, people caring for family members, people living with disabilities looking for work and people relying on child support. They deserve systems that operate as parliament intended and deliver support when it is needed. This bill helps ensure that happens, and for that reason I commend the bill to the House.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER ( Ms Sharkie ): I understand the member for Pearce would like to present a copy of her speech for incorporation into Hansard, in accordance with the resolution agreed to on 6 November 2025.