There have been several government initiatives to improve childcare in Australia. Because of Australian children aged 0-11, half are in some form of non-parental childcare. There are still intense shortages in long day care, places resulting in waiting lists, the system is plagued by inflexibility and prohibitive costs. But Government assistance has been found to enhance workforce participation with a benefit-cost ratio of nearly 2:1 for government and over 8:1 for society overall.* 

So why is childcare not an election issue this year? Given how much it helps society, and how much stress an adequate system would save mums!

*Source: Reality Check Worklife Balance Report: http://www.worklifeassociation.org/