Mr. Toby Wolfe:

Of course. I will start with the first question around resources for childminders working in the parent's home. The Senator is correct that the main focus of the national action plan is on self-employed childminders working in the childminder's home but it commits to develop information and training resources for those who are working in the parent's home.

The Senator asked for the details. I suppose the details of this and of many aspects of the plan are still to be worked out during phase 1 and there will be consultation during phase 1.

The focus is primarily on childminders working in the childminder's home. I suppose we are cautious about placing too many restrictions on parents' freedom to make private arrangements and, in particular, there would be significant challenges in regulating childminding in the child's home. If the childminder is working from the childminder's home, the childminder is typically self-employed and offers a service, and it is accessed effectively on a public basis. Someone caring for a child in the child's home is an employee of the child's parents and may carry out a range of duties, not only childminding but cleaning or other domestic duties, and, because the childminder works in the parents' home rather than the childminder's home, the childminder cannot be held responsible for the safety or suitability of that home for the purpose of early learning or childcare. It is an area where we have to move cautiously. We have not ruled out the possibility of further future supports in that area but the next step is the regulation and support of self-employed childminders. We acknowledge there is a big challenge ahead in doing what we are setting out to do in the national action plan and I suppose that is the next few years of activity.