E&OE TRANSCRIPT 
TV INTERVIEW  
ABC News Breakfast
Wednesday, 24 June 2026 

Topics: TAX REFORM; NDIS; PAID PARENTAL LEAVE

JAMES GLENDAY: The Social Services Minister, Tanya Plibersek joins us now from Canberra. Minister, welcome back to our program.

MINISTER FOR SOCIAL SERVICES, TANYA PLIBERSEK: Good morning, James.

GLENDAY: Was this a surprise at all that The Greens supported this, I mean, they've been campaigning for changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax for years. Were they always going to get on board?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, the legislation that's before the Parliament at the moment gives a tax cut for every single Australian taxpayer. It cuts taxes for business as well and it changes taxes around housing to give young Australians a chance of owning their own home. You know, that has been part of the great Australian dream for as long as I can remember, but it's become increasingly out of reach for most Australians. I'm not surprised that The Greens are backing this. I'm very surprised that the Liberals and the Nationals and One Nation aren't backing it because it gives tax cuts for taxpayers, it gives tax cuts for business and it helps young Australians into a home of their own. What's not to like?

GLENDAY: You were the deputy Labor leader when very similar policies were put to the Australian people the 2019 election and they were rejected. Are you confident that public sentiment has now changed? Obviously there's been something of a backlash in some media outlets in particular.

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Look, I think there's always been a lot of change. There's always been a lot of support for changes to housing taxes because parents like me, grandparents, have a look at their kids and grandkids and think, how are they ever going to afford a home of their own? And I have to say this is one of the things that has consistently been raised with me. Most often when I'm out on the weekends doing street stalls across my electorate one of the most consistent topics raised over many years has been our concerns, adults my age, concerns about how their kids and grandkids are ever going to afford a home of their own with the tax settings that used to advantage people who are investors so much more than first home buyers. You know, people trying to save a deposit were always feeling like that deposit was increasingly out of reach because housing prices were growing so much faster than wages or savings could keep up with. So, now we've got our 5% deposit policy that's helped around 260,000 people into a home of their own. We're changing the tax treatment so that first time buyers actually have a shot in the housing market, instead of competing with investors who really were getting all those tax benefits to help them compete against first home buyers. Finally, young Australians have a shot of homeownership again.

GLENDAY: Just taking back to that question again, though. If, let's say house prices go down by 10%, which is roughly what some analysts are forecasting could happen, will Australians still support these changes, do you think? Will people your age, maybe around your part of Sydney be like, that's absolutely fine to see the value of my biggest asset go down?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yeah, I think people need to, to take a deep breath on all of this. Our Treasury estimates are that house prices will continue to grow, they'll grow more slowly. That gives people the chance of home ownership. And if you go to weekend auctions at the moment, there's still a lot of buying going on but it's first home buyers who are actually having a shot at the market, competing with other first home buyers. Well, we want them to have a shot at home ownership. Most people don't buy a house and sell it tomorrow either. That's the thing that we need to keep in mind. People buy a house and stay there. I think the average is about seven years. Very often people are staying there for much longer than that. So, I think the fact that weekend clearance rates are a bit down at the moment, I think that's just a feature of the sort of instability we're seeing globally and what's happening with interest rates. People just need to take a deep breath.

GLENDAY: It'll be interesting to say not everyone has that much faith in those Treasury figures. But I want to take you back to this bill that's passed, this part of the agreement with The Greens. The inquiry into the NDIS cuts is going to be extended. What ultimately, apart from adding a bit more to the budget, what actually is this going to achieve? Because it does appear as though the coalition is ultimately going to support you on these changes.

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, a couple of things to say. The first is we built the NDIS, Labor built the NDIS. We love the NDIS. We know how necessary it is. I'm so proud of it. All of us are so proud of it. But when we came to government in 2022, the cost of the NDIS was growing at 22% per annum. It was growing way too fast. And to protect the NDIS, we need to moderate that growth to something more reasonable. This is not about cuts to the NDIS. I have to pick you up on that. This is about slowing the rate of NDIS growth. The NDIS will continue to grow every single year-

GLENDAY: But why not just, why not get on with it now, though? Why extend the inquiry out if you're going to have the support ultimately of the Coalition?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, I don't think there's any harm in giving people the opportunity to have their say on this. I think all of the advocates who are getting up and saying, we helped build the NDIS, we campaigned for it, it's good to hear from them. And I want to say to them, we want to work with you to make sure we have the best NDIS possible, but one that is sustainable into the future. No government program can grow in cost at the rate of 22% per annum. I mean, the NDIS is a fantastic program, but it has to grow in a way that protects it for future generations.

GLENDAY: On a separate issue, Pauline Hanson has insisted she has no plans to wind back Paid Parental Leave after some comments she made at the Press Club led to reports that she might be leaving the door open to changes. She claims she was taken out of context. I know you've been going over her comments. Do you think she was?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: No, because 10 years ago she said, in 2017, she said that women just get pregnant to get the money. So, she's been, she's been pretty consistent in what she said about Paid Parental Leave. A few weeks ago she said, you know, love, if you've got the equipment, you know, have the baby, take the time off work. Completely unsympathetic to the financial stress on Australian families that having a new baby brings with it. She says it at the press club and obviously she's had a negative reaction and now she's backpedalling. But Paid Parental Leave is not safe with Pauline Hanson, and just, by the way, it's also not safe with the Liberals. Scott Morrison and Joe Hockey called mothers on Paid Parental Leave rorters and double dippers. And Tim Wilson, who's the current Shadow Treasurer, has said it's not his choice that women have babies, it’s genetic, and, you know, why should taxpayers pay for it? Like, it's only Labor that will continue to invest in Paid Parental Leave. And I'm so proud of the fact that from 1st of July next week, we're going to increase paid parental leave again. Families will get the full six months to have off with their tiny new babies. They'll get more money. So, it's just over $1,000 a week. We've added superannuation as well. So, Australian families are better off because of the changes we've made to Paid Parental Leave. And most importantly, those beautiful little new babies are better off because they get more time with Mum and Dad.

GLENDAY: Just finally, Minister, when you look at the UK and you see the Prime Minister crying or holding back tears outside Downing street, does it take you back to the Rudd, Gillard, Rudd era? Politicians are human as well. Does it, does it kind of bring up that trauma when you see it?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Oh, it doesn't bring up trauma, but I have a lot of sympathy for Keir Starmer and his family. It's a very tough job. Being the leader of any political party is a tough job and we, you know, you see people put their heart and soul into it. They do their very best. They work round the clock, seven days a week. And when their colleagues tell them that they don't have the confidence that they'll be able to lead them to electoral victory, that's a tough message to hear. I'm thinking about Sussan Ley, actually right now. She was told that, you know, her party was going badly because she was the leader and in fact, all the polling's got worse since she left. So, you know, sometimes perhaps they feel a bit vindicated.

GLENDAY: Ah yes. Tanya Plibersek, thank you very much for joining us this morning.

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Thank you.

ENDS