‘It’s a rort’: Coalition under fire after ministers admit to ‘double dipping’ with paid parental leave

The Coalition has been forced into defensive mode after it was revealed two senior members of government had “double dipped” under the current paid parental leave scheme.

One of the government’s key proposals in Tuesday’s budget was to modify the paid parental leave scheme to prevent new mothers receiving payments from their employer and the government.

However, Finance Minister Mathias Cormann and Assistant Treasurer Josh Frydenberg have since conceded their families both benefited from the current scheme.

“My wife, like many woman, accessed both schemes,” Mr Frydenberg.

Social Services Minister Scott Morrison is also under fire after saying he thought the current scheme was a “rort” in many cases.

He said later today he had only been talking about the scheme, not the participants.