‘Not going quiet on that’: Backbench pressure on PM to deliver universal childcare promise
She's only 22, but Labor Senator Charlotte Walker isn't holding back when it comes to holding the prime minister accountable on his childcare promises.
Anthony Albanese is facing pressure from his own backbench to deliver on his election promise that universal childcare would be his legacy as prime minister.
22-year-old Labor Senator for South Australia, Charlotte Walker, worked in childcare administration before entering parliament.
She tells 7NEWS podcast The Issue that the job is not finished in terms of reforming the early childhood education sector.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.“We absolutely have not been going quiet on that,” Walker told The Issue.
“It’s something that we talk about in the chamber all the time... and between colleagues.
“Childcare is going to continue to be a priority of this government and a really important legacy.
“So obviously not all the work’s done, but I’m really proud of the moves that we’ve made.”
The childcare debate inside Labor
During the ABC election debate in 2025 host David Speers asked the prime minister one area he’d like to reform and Anthony Albanese nominated affordable childcare and spoke about a goal of universal subsidised access.
In January this year Labor went half the way towards a universal system by introducing the three day guarantee.
Department of Education figures show the three day guarantee gives more than 90,000 extra families access to three days of subsidised childcare a week.
For families earning up to $100,000, it saves them around $1,500 a year.
But in May this year Treasurer Jim Chalmers gave the PM’s larger goal a budget reality check when he said, “it will take time to get to a system which is more universal.”
Charlotte Walker acknowledges the incremental process.
“That’s something that we’re working towards,” Walker said.
“Like the prime minister said, he wants it to be a legacy of our government. So I’m really proud of the moves that we’ve made.”
Opposition working on a policy
The Opposition is working around a childcare policy that centres on giving parents more choice outside the standard model.
Former Liberal Education Minister Alan Tudge has suggested a $160 a fortnight payment for grandparents who care for grandchildren for more than 20 hours a week, and tax cuts for single income families.
Coalition leader Angus Taylor wouldn’t rule out payments for grandparents when asked by 7News on Friday, and said a policy would be released in coming months.
“Under Labor we’ve seen a single option, which is a standardised childcare system, which works for many Australians, but not all of them,” Taylor said.
“We need to have more flexibility and more choice.
“We’ll have more to say about that in the in the coming months.
“But it’s an important issue, and I think Australians are really under the pump right now.”
The stage is set for a childcare showdown at the 2028 election.
To catch this week’s episode of The Issue podcast head to YouTube, 7Plus or LiSNTR.
Originally published on 7NEWS
