Overview

• MPs and senators were welcomed in Canberra with a traditional Welcome to Country as the 48th Parliament began.
• The government will introduce a bill to cut student loan debt by 20%, a measure estimated to aid about three million borrowers at a cost of A$16 billion.
• Legislation to penalise childcare centres that fail to meet quality standards will include funding cuts and the creation of an independent regulator.
• A separate bill will enshrine penalty rate protections for casual and shift workers, fulfilling another election pledge.
• With Labor holding 29 Senate seats against the Coalition’s 27 and the Greens’ 10, ministers must strike agreements to secure passage of their first-week agenda.