Productivity Commission Calls for Universal Childcare

The PC proposes introducing a universal childcare model that would make quality services accessible to all Australian children and families.

Parent and children enjoy time at a playground in Brunswick in Melbourne, Australia, on Sept. 3, 2021. Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

The Australian Productivity Commission (PC) has pushed for a universal childcare scheme to improve children’s development and household incomes.

In a draft report on the early childhood education and care (ECEC) system, the commission pointed out that while ECEC services are widely available to Australian families (90 percent of four-year-olds are enrolled in ECEC), many children were still missing out.