Media Releases by Senator the Hon Kay Patterson
Labor scaremongering over child care
Labor are once again scaremongering Australian families by only telling half the story about the cost of child care, following the release yesterday of the…
Child care sector growing
More families and children are accessing more approved child care services with better qualified workers than ever before, demonstrating the Australian child care sector’s growth.…
New employment opportunities for people with disabilities
People with disabilities will be given a greater variety of employment choices with the opening of a packaging room in Melbourne today. The Minister for…
Self-funded retirees win more than $100 allowance windfall
More than 290,000 self-funded retirees holding Commonwealth Seniors Health Cards (CSHC) are now receiving a $101.40 payment as the second instalment of the Howard Government’s…
Minister celebrates communities and children in East Gippsland
Gippslanders were today invited to celebrate new activities and services for children and families in the area, at an event in Lakes Entrance hosted by…
Pension changes from 1 July 2005
About 900,000 part-pension recipients may get pension rate increases of up to $12.00 a fortnight from 1 July following the annual indexation of social security…
New Social Security Agreement with Belgium Commences
A new Social Security Agreement between Australian and Belgium will commence on 1 July 2005. The Minister for Family and Community Services, Senator Kay Patterson,…
States and Territories agree to SAAP V three month extension
All Australian States and Territories have now accepted the Howard Government’s offer of an extension of the current Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP IV), for…
Government responds to ‘Watershed’ Child Custody Report
The Government today tabled its response to the watershed report of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Family and Community Affairs on child custody,…
More help for Australian families
Extra assistance for Australian parents returning to work following the birth of a child and the extension of Maternity Payment for adopted children will now…
Joint Government action gives Aboriginal people the powers to confront family violence and abuse
Indigenous South Australians will be helped to take action against family violence and child abuse in their own communities thanks to three major projects worth…
$1.4 million for early childhood services across Australia
Twenty-four early childhood services across Australia will be boosted to provide parental advice on the availability of other social support services with the help of…
More BiTS to help visually impaired in South Australia
People who are blind, or visually impaired, will now have better access to a wide range of information through the extension of an innovative system…
Howard Government makes wheels on the Bilby bus go round and round
A ‘Bilby Bus’, which provides specialised mobile playgroups to families in caravan parks and housing estates in metropolitan Adelaide, will receive an extra $81,000 in…
Applications invited for new child care places
The Howard Government is delivering its Budget commitment to assist parents with child care with moves to allocate 15,000 new Outside School Hours Care (OSHC)…
Ministerial Taskforce Report on Child Support Released
The report of the Ministerial Taskforce on Child Support was publicly released today. The Minister for Family and Community Services, Senator Kay Patterson, said that…
Women honoured for their contributions at home and abroad
One hundred and fifty seven Australian women have been honoured for their contribution in Australia and abroad by being awarded 2005 Queen’s Birthday Honours in…
Empowering communities to turn problems into opportunities
Communities will be given a massive boost to develop local projects with the help of $5.68 million in funding for 43 projects across Victoria under…
Good News For Women
:Labor force data released this week shows that female employment remains high while wages growth remains strong. The Minister for Family and Community Services and…
Government supporting men and their families
A national telephone counselling and referral service aimed at providing assistance and support to men and their families was opened today. The Minister for Family…
$21.5 million for 158 communities
158 new projects across Australia will share in over $21.5 million in funding under the Howard Government’s highly successful Local Answersinitiative. The Minister for Family…
Children to benefit from over $9.5 million upgrade to childcare services across Australia
Essential facilities such as playgrounds, kitchens and bathrooms will be upgraded at 414 not for profit community-based child care services around Australia with over $9.5…
Government Assistance for Vivian Solon already on the table
Claims in a media report that the Australian Government is delaying the return of Ms Vivian Solon to Australia and not offering her an appropriate…
$1.1 million funding boost for playgroup and children’s services opens door to better futures
Children, their parents or caregivers and local communities are set to benefit from $1.1 million in funding from the Howard Government to boost family services…
National Childcare Accreditation Council Board Appointments
Four new appointments and one re-appointment to the National Childcare Accreditation Council (NCAC) Board are an indication of the Howard Government’s commitment to ensuring high…