Queensland Labor MP Anika Wells is the latest person to slam the government’s newly-announced Budget 2020. In this case, Wells called out the fact the budget completely ignores childcare, all while her unborn twin babies kicked her from inside.
While giving the speech in parliament, Wells can be heard losing her breath as her twin babies kicked, while discussing issues that affect new parents and working mothers in particular.
On Twitter, she described the feeling as “four tiny feet up in my ribs starving my oxygen,” which just shows how important it was for the speech to be heard.
The average Australian taxpayer is a 38 yr old working woman with 2 kids. Where is the #Budget2020 childcare relief, where is the pathway for more flexible work? Where is the value placed on her contribution in 2020? (Feat. 4 tiny feet up in my ribs starving my oxygen) #auspol pic.twitter.com/PMvh6ERc0G
— Anika Wells MP (@AnikaWells) October 7, 2020
Wells argued that in Budget 2020, the government focused on helping out male-dominated industries, while industries which overwhelmingly employ women have been ignored.
The biggest one is childcare, which, aside from employing women and working mothers, is also a massive help for working mothers in other professions.
“The male-dominated construction sector receives targeted taxpayer stimulus,” Wells said, while short of breath.
“The 97% female childcare sector is the first to have their funding ripped out from under them.”
Government loans to 10,000 first-home buyers are expected to generate around $800 million in economic activity for the construction industry. Meanwhile, childcare was the first sector to be cut off from JobKeeper payments back in July.
Wells then went on to explain how these policy decisions aren’t even reflective of the average taxpayer.
“The average Australian taxpayer is a 38-year-old working woman with two kids,” she added.
“She is the one who is getting done over by the Prime Minister’s approach to economic stimulus and the economic recovery.
“It is her taxpayer dollars, it is her right to work, all being completely tossed aside by this Prime Minister.”
It seems women have been left out of #Budget2020 even though they have been on the front lines fighting the pandemic & they have lost the most jobs.
— Sally McManus (@sallymcmanus) October 6, 2020
In the aftermath of Budget 2020, heaps of groups have come out swinging after feeling forgotten by the government.
They include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people out of work, and aged pensioners.
When it comes to half of the population, Wells and plenty of others have noted that Budget 2020 does hardly anything for women.
“Australian women are not only losing their jobs at a faster rate than men during this COVID-19 recession,” Wells said.
“They are being helped less by emergency government stimulus”
