Hoping to drive home its argument, the government is pointing to new figures showing a significant increase in childcare costs as evidence urgent action is required.
The Early Childhood and Child Care in Summary report shows early childcare costs have risen at five times the rate of inflation over a 12-month period.
The report, released by the Education Department, shows more than 1.2 million Australian children used childcare in the year to June 2016.
It found that in that period, the average hourly fee rose by almost 7.6 per cent - an increase of 2.1 per cent.
Average hourly fee for long day care - the most popular service - increased by 6.3 per cent to $8.90.
Education Minister Simon Birmingham says the impact of slow wages growth, coupled with increased childcare costs, means the system needs urgent reform.
"What we've done is identify sensible ways to ensure there are savings to pay for childcare investment and we think this is an appropriate thing to give families who want to participate in the workforce more, more support to enable them to do so, so that families are empowered to choose the hours they work, the days they work, without childcare costs being an impediment and we have solutions to be able to do that, but they must be paid for."
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce is calling on the Senate to pass the bill when it is introduced this week.
He told the ABC that funds for increased childcare subsidies have to come from somewhere.
"Ultimately we have to balance the books. Ultimately we have to make sure we stop borrowing money from overseas and family want this support. This is a payment that comes straight off the table," Minister Joyce said.
"We have to do it in a prudent, responsible way. We are prepared to make life easier for childcare and families, we want to. If the Senate wants to stymie it, and that's the Labor Party too, by the way. The Labor Party are responsible for this. Then they've got to hold it on their shoulders as to why families are not being looked after."
But Labor's Early Childhood Development spokesperson, Kate Ellis, told the ABC, the government needs to consider other options.
"We don't believe that you need to hit 1.6 million Australian families with cruel cuts in order to deliver on childcare reforms that have been promised for years. The government has many options, this is about priorities."
The CEO of industry group, Early Childhood Australia, Samantha Page, says many providers are broadly supportive of the childcare changes.
But she says they shouldn't come at the expense of social security recipients.
"We don't accept that the additional expenditure on childcare subsidies needs to be predicated on welfare cuts at all. The childcare bill will pay for itself, there's clear modelling from Price Waterhouse Coopers that indicates that, through increased workforce participation and income tax revenue. Also there has been cuts in the past to family tax benefit which more than pays for the increased investment in the childcare subsidy."
