It seems Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, is beginning to learn the art of compromise. After receiving flak from all directions on his paid parental leave (PPL) love child, Abbott has finally given some ground, agreeing to drop the salary limit on the scheme to $100,000 from $150,000, so that it matches the Government’s new cut-off for family tax benefits. This means that the most parental leave that a high income women could receive under the scheme is now $50,000, rather than $75,000 previously.
According to The Australian, the lower threshold would provide only modest Budget savings, with only 2% of women earning more than $100,000 being of child-bearing age.
The scaling back of the scheme is, therefore, clearly aimed at winning over the Greens, so that it can gain passage through the Senate. The Greens have previously stated that they would support the measure if it was capped at $100,000, but have since flagged that they would prefer to see the money diverted into childcare, which offers far greater benefits for boosting workforce participation.
Some Coalition ministers remain unsupportive of the scheme, even with the $100,000 threshold. While the lower threshold has won the support of Liberal Senator Sue Boyce, other members remain opposed, with several Liberals and Nationals still expected to cross the floor and vote against the scheme if/when it comes to a vote. The National’s Barnaby Joyce has admitted that the Government does not have the numbers to pass the scheme, noting “that’s why I’m not losing sleep at night talking about something that I can’t see its passage through the Senate…”.
It looks like Abbott will need to offer more compromises if PPL is ever to see the light of day.
