Shadow Minister for Early Childhood Education and Development, Amanda Rishworth, joined Member for Macarthur, Dr Mike Freelander, at a number of early learning centres today to discuss Labor’s National Preschool and Kindy Program.

Labor’s National Preschool and Kindy Program will see the biggest ever investment in early childhood education in Macarthur and right around Australia.

Under Labor, more than 4,829 children in the Macarthur region will have greater access to early education, giving them the best possible start to their education.

From 2021, every three year old in Macarthur will be able to access 15 hours of subsidised early childhood education, so they can get the best start to learning.

This is greater access to early education for more than 2,465 three year old children.

Labor will also extend the current arrangement for four year olds accessing preschool programs – creating a quality, two-year program that boosts learning in the most important years of a child’s development.

This is a total investment of an additional $1.75 billion into early education.

90 per cent of a child’s brain development occurs in the first five years of life - an investment in early education is one of the smartest investments our country can make.

Currently, Scott Morrison has failed to extend preschool funding for four year olds beyond next school year – including 2,364 preschool children in the Macarthur electorate alone.

The Liberals see education as a cost – that’s why they’ve cut $14 billion from public schools and left preschool funding in limbo. Labor sees it as an investment in our collective future.

Labor has said that we will work in partnership with the states and territories to deliver this important reform, including in setting enrolment and attendance targets, particularly for Indigenous and vulnerable children.

We’ve made tough and overdue decisions to rein in unfair tax concessions that predominantly benefit the wealthy – including negative gearing reform and dividend imputation reform – so we can fund the priorities that will make a fairer and more successful nation.