The issue was discussed in policy talks during the new-look government’s first cabinet meeting since Mr Rudd returned to the leadership, with options being pursued about how best to financially help those mostly single mothers affected…

New figures show growing numbers of single women juggling busy working lives with the intense demands of bringing up children. In 2001 there were 121,400 single women in Australia with a child, working more than 35 hours each week. Jump forward a decade and their numbers have grown dramatically, by 43 per cent. By the time of the 2011 census, there were 173,600 single mothers working full-time hours across Australia…