21-day limit on ex parte orders. Child support reassessed in 30 days when income drops. $10/hr childcare. 26 weeks parental leave. Right to disconnect. Granny flats as of right. Royal Commission into the family-law system. Ministry for Families Day 1.
A Family Violence Restraining Order can be obtained on the basis of one party's account, without the other party being present or heard. The order is made. Family court proceedings that follow can take 12–24 months. During that time, a parent — almost always a father — can be removed from a child's life entirely. The current system allows allegation to function as finding.
When a parent's income drops — through job loss, illness, or career change — the Child Support Agency continues to assess them at the higher income. Debt accumulates. The system pursues that debt with passport cancellation, licence suspension, and credit destruction — making it harder for the parent to earn the money to pay, which compounds the debt. It is a structural failure dressed as enforcement.
Australia's fertility rate is 1.63. Replacement is 2.1. Survey after survey shows Australians want more children than they are having. They are being priced out. Housing: cannot afford space for a family. Childcare: consumes the second income entirely. Time: working hours and commutes leave nothing for family life. The settings have been wrong for a generation, and the consequences will be visible for the next two.
A Royal Commission examines: whether the adversarial model serves children; whether ex parte FVROs are used tactically; whether the 2023 removal of equal parental responsibility was evidence-based; why proceedings cost $100,000+ per party; and the deeper question of why marriages are failing at this rate. Reports within two years. MMP implements the recommendations within 12 months of the final report.
No ex parte parenting order removing a parent from a child's life may stand more than 21 days without both parties being heard. The current system allows removal on one account — without hearing, without evidence tested, with no timeline for resolution. That ends immediately, pending the Royal Commission's full recommendations.
Child support reassessment applications processed within 30 days where income has dropped more than 15%. Under the current system a parent waits months while debt accumulates at the old rate. 30 days is the maximum. The debt does not compound while the system delays.
Passport cancellation and licence suspension for child support debt are suspended where the debtor is on a payment plan and adhering to it. These tools, applied to a parent who is demonstrably trying to pay, prevent earning and destroy the very capacity to pay they are supposed to enforce.
A dedicated Ministry for Families with a single mandate: make Australia a great place to form and raise a family. Every bill includes a Family Impact Statement. Planning rules that prevent granny flats. Tax rules that penalise couples. Welfare rules that punish partnership. All reviewed. Most reformed. Some abolished.
Childcare capped at $10/hr maximum. Not means-tested. Universal. 26 weeks total parental leave, 8 weeks reserved non-transferable for each parent — use it or lose it for both. Normalises fathers being present in the early weeks. 15 hours per week of free early childhood education for every 3- and 4-year-old.
Employees cannot be required to respond to work outside paid hours. For parents of children under 12: flexible work is the presumed right. Employer must demonstrate genuine necessity to refuse. And the FIFO non-default: when a worker comes home at night instead of flying out, a family stays together. SBC corridor towns and regional industry make daily return commutes possible for jobs that currently require FIFO.
Granny flats approved as of right on residential properties nationally. No council discretion to refuse. Complying development only. Keeps ageing parents near family, reduces aged care demand, provides affordable housing for adult children, and creates multigenerational options that planning rules currently obstruct.
Free relationship counselling through Medicare. Relationship education in schools — Australians learn academic subjects but almost nothing about sustaining a relationship or managing conflict. After any order reducing a parent's contact, that parent is contacted within 14 days by a mental health service. Not optional. Automatic.
Legal aid on financial need, not gender. Mandatory mediation before filing, except where family violence is supported by evidence. An immediate minimum while the Royal Commission develops the substantive answer. Commission reports in two years. MMP implements its recommendations within twelve months of the final report.
| Current — The Problem | MMP — The Solution |
|---|---|
| Ex parte orders can remove a parent from children's lives indefinitely on one account. | Ex parte limit: 21 days maximum. Both parties heard. Guaranteed. Immediate. |
| Child support assessment continues at old income rate when earnings drop. Debt accumulates. | Income drop of 15%+: reassessment within 30 days. Maximum. No delay debt accumulation. |
| Passport cancelled for child support debt, even while on a payment plan. | Passport cancellation suspended while on payment plan and adhering to it. |
| Family law proceedings: 12–24 months. Cost: $100,000+ per party. Justice denied. | Royal Commission: adversarial model examined. Faster resolution. Lower cost. Better outcomes. |
| Legal aid available differently by gender. Mediation not mandatory. | Legal aid on financial need only. Mandatory mediation before filing (except genuine violence). |
| Childcare: average $150/day. Second income entirely consumed. Poverty trap. | Childcare cap: $10/hr maximum. Not means-tested. Available universally. |
| Parental leave: inadequate, not genuinely shared. Fathers rarely take meaningful time. | 26 weeks per child, 8 weeks reserved non-transferable for each parent. |
| Council can refuse granny flats. Ageing parents end up in distant aged care. | Granny flats as of right nationally. Complying development. Multigenerational housing enabled. |
No memos pinned to this policy yet. When an MMP memo on this topic is published, it will appear here with a short summary. The full memo index is at moralmajority.com.au/memos.html.