QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

Senator GALLAGHER (Australian Capital Territory—Minister for Finance, Minister for the Public Service, Minister for Women, Minister for Government Services and Manager of Government Business in the Senate) (14:11): I thank Senator Darmanin for that question. This is an area that the Minister for Social Services and I have been working on together, but, again, it comes from all of the assistance across our caucus in areas where constituents have raised issues with members of parliament, we have seen a problem, have identified a problem and are determined to act on it.

There is almost $2 billion in unpaid child support across Australia. Too many children are missing out on that support. I have met some of those children who, when they've become adults, have come and lobbied me to say that, because of their parents' breakdown in relationship, one parent decided to keep them in poverty for their entire childhood as a result of that relationship breakdown.

That is not good enough and the Commonwealth will amend our systems to make sure, as much as we can, that, when parents have a marriage breakdown or a relationship breakdown, they don't do it in a way that causes further harm to the parents and children.