Federal childcare reforms pass set to pass the Senate

The Turnbull Government’s childcare reforms package has passed the House of Representatives, along with a renegotiated set of welfare cuts hoped to save the budget billions.

The government rushed the childcare package through the lower house today, with not a single Coalition MP speaking on the changes.

Three Labor MPs and independent Cathy McGowan spoke on the legislation before debate was gagged and successfully voted on.

The success of the childcare package comes after the government’s decision to split it from an omnibus savings bill that failed to attract crossbench support in the Senate.

READ MORE: Government does deal on welfare cuts, child care

The proposed changes involve an overhaul of the existing childcare payment system.

The current Child Care Rebate system - which subsidises 50 percent of fees to an annual cap of $7500 - will be replaced with a single payment that covers 85 percent of fees for families earning less than $65,710 a year.

The $1.6 billion reforms package will be funded by changes to several other welfare programs.

Family Tax Benefits rates will be frozen for three years, meaning indexation will be paused starting this year.

This is expected to generate around $1.4 billion over the two-year period.

A fortnightly $20 payment to families will also be axed.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has accused Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull of "pitting families against each other".

But Senator Nick Xenophon described the proposed changes as the "least worst option in dealing with these issues".