Parents should not have their childcare costs subsidised by non-parents, Liberal Democratic Senator David Leyonhjelm said.

He has called for deregulation of the childcare system, pointing to his perceived over-qualifications of workers, which push up prices.

Mr Leyonhjelm told Fairfax Media he will not support increases to childcare payments.

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He said childcare workers were expected to hold qualifications “for very remote contingencies”.

“As a result, parents are expected to pay for this and they are screaming to the government saying we can’t afford it and the government, for political reasons, will subsidise it,” he said, as Fairfax Media reported.

Social Services Minister Scott Morrison flagged changes to childcare subsidies in a speech on Thursday, where a non-means-tested rebate and low-to-middle income earner payments would be rolled in together.

“That’s a clear recommendation of the Productivity Commission and I think it makes an enormous amount of sense,” he said.