Senior Albo minister floats a big change to parental leave after Pauline Hanson urgently clarified her views about women not being paid

By WILL NICHOLAS FOR AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS Published: 04:30, 24 June 2026 | Updated: 04:31, 24 June 2026 The Albanese government is not ruling out future extensions to government-funded paid parental leave, as it seeks to pounce on Pauline Hanson's comments criticising leave arrangements. New parents will be eligible for 26 weeks of combined paid leave from July 1, with mums and dads receiving a minimum wage of about $1000 a week during their time off work. As One Nation's leader came under fire for saying it was 'fair enough' for women not to be paid while taking time off, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met with mum Anne Barker and her baby Zoe at Parliament House, while spruiking the upcoming leave extension. Surrounded by a group of babies of Labor MPs, Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek said an increase to the 26 weeks of government-funded leave wasn't off the table. 'We always look for ways of doing more to support families when we can,' she told reporters. 'We need to protect what we already have.' The increase to 26 weeks is the last scheduled update to paid parental leave outlined in legislation the federal government passed in 2022. Of the 26 weeks, at least four weeks are reserved for the father or non-birthing parent on a use it or lose it basis. Pauline Hanson issued an urgent clarification in media interviews this week after her comments to the National Press Club last week about paid parental leave   The scheme now costs the government $5 billion per year, according to Ms Plibersek. During an address to the National Press Club a week ago, Hanson said: 'If women take time off and they are not paid their wages because they're not working, fair enough, why should the business pay them if they are not at work?'   The claim has since sparked debate over the policy. Hanson on Wednesday said she had always fully supported paid parental leave, provided it didn't burden businesses. 'I've got no problem with it, I've always fully supported it,' she told Sky News. 'If it's put on big business or any business at all, parental leave, they wouldn't be able to afford it, the cost to businesses these days is extremely hard.' About 700,000 parents voiced concerns over Hanson's comments to advocacy group The Parenthood, the organisation's senior director Tegan Gilchrist told the Australian Associated Press. But businesses and working families should both be on the same side of the debate about offering generous parental leave, Ms Gilchrist said. 'For many small businesses, the boardroom is the family dining table', Ms Gilchrist told AAP. 'This is a win-win, and it's a false fight to pit these two things against each other.' Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek said an increase to the 26 weeks of government-funded parental leave wasn't off the table The Parenthood wants the program extended to 12 months, and allow parents to split time off between them as they please. Australia is still falling short on international standards around leave for mothers, Ms Gilchrist said, which the World Health Organisation says should be a full 26 weeks. Four weeks off for fathers also doesn't stack up, the Parenthood senior director told AAP. Parents on leave should be paid based on how much they earn working normally, rather than minimum wage, according to Ms Gilchrist, saying it pressures the lower-paid parents to cop the pay cut and become the primary carer. 'That locks in a default carer from the beginning,' she said. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.