Overview

• The early-childhood safety bill grants the education secretary power to refuse, suspend or cancel Child Care Subsidy approvals for centres deemed to fail quality and safety standards.
• The legislation requires warnings, show-cause notices and a 28-day grace period for centres to address breaches before subsidies can be withdrawn.
• It expands federal regulatory authority to conduct unannounced spot checks, enter services without consent during operating hours, and publish compliance actions.
• The bill is expected to pass the House with Coalition and Greens support, although key benchmarks for failure and funding triggers remain undefined.
• State, territory and federal ministers will meet in coming weeks to negotiate interjurisdictional measures including CCTV installation, a national worker registry and strengthened working-with-children checks.