Abbott alters leave scheme

The Coalition has reduced the levy on big business to pay for their paid parental leave scheme, from 1.7 per cent to 1.5 per cent Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says.

Mr Abbott announced changes to the policy in the Brisbane seat of Bowman, which the Liberals hold by a tiny margin.

The scheme will still be 26 weeks long, but the levy on big business has been reduced from 1.7 per cent to 1.5 per cent.

Mr Abbott said the $8.8 billion scheme would start on July 1, 2012 if the coalition wins the August 21 election.

"I think it's very important that my daughter's generation doesn't have to struggle the way their mothers did, trying to wrestle with the difficult choices of work and family," he told reporters.

"We need to make those choices much easier and that's what this policy is all about."

Mr Abbott said he wanted the levy to be a temporary one, but could not say when it would end.

"Because of the dire fiscal position that this government has put us in I'm not going to put a timetable on it," he said.

"I don't know what I'm going to inherit."

Mr Abbott said he could not be confident of finding what Labor said was available would actually be there.

Nearly every single government project had been subject to cost overruns and blowouts, he said.

Labor questions 'new-look scheme'

Environment Minister Peter Garrett described Mr Abbott's approach to paid parental leave as "on and off again".

"Now they are talking about delaying a scheme which under Labor would be in place in another five months and which is already legislated for," Mr Garrett told reporters in Queanbeyan.

Mr Abbott's economic approach would be a key issue of focus during the campaign, Mr Garrett said.

"I think that the campaign will be one where the focus remains on the two leaders," he said.

"If you are looking at a question of how each leader is campaigning then just consider Mr Abbott's on and off again approach to economic policy."