Early Childhood and Childcare Minister Kate Ellis says she supports the Australian Nanny Association in its bid to introduce a standard for care, but she would not want to see existing services cut to provide government support for nannies.
"It is a very, very long road to regulate nannies, but I think it's a road that we should be encouraging them to tread down," Ms Ellis told reporters in Melbourne on Thursday.
"What I do not support is cutting existing childcare support for families in order to fund an extended nanny scheme which is what's been put forward by Tony Abbott and the Opposition."
Mr Abbott has called for a Productivity Commission inquiry to see if the existing in-home care program could be expanded, but an extension of the scheme would not be allowed to cost any more money.
The federal government currently funds an in-home care program for families who don't have access to childcare or for whom childcare is not an option.
On Thursday, 790 additional places became available thanks to funding announced in October.
Ms Ellis said the government paid more than double for the in-home care program than for any other form of childcare but it was a priority to deliver support to parents who needed it most.
She would not speculate on whether nanny regulation could lead to federal funding for nannies but said the government was happy to provide advice on setting standards.
"It is nannies themselves who are saying they want to be regulated," Ms Ellis said.
"No matter what form of care an Australian parent chooses to use ... they should have confidence that that care has minimum standards, is regulated and has pretty basic features like police checks which are a requirement.
"That is currently not the case."
Ms Ellis also announced a further 300 occasional care places that would be available from Thursday.
The in-home care rebate covers 50 per cent of out-of-pocket costs of a carer after the Commonwealth Childcare Benefit for families who qualify for the rebate.
__small.png)
