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Canberra Today 16°/17° | Friday, March 29, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

Bourke / NDIS is too important to play games with

THE National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is one of those big, nation-changing, once-in-a-generation reforms of which all Australians should be proud.

Dr Chris Bourke.
Dr Chris Bourke.

Worryingly though, there now appear to be threats to its success.

At a recent meeting of the nation’s disability ministers, proposals were made that would give the Commonwealth Disability Minister more power by removing the need for governance and compliance issues to be agreed by all parties.

Under the proposal, the NDIS Act would be altered so that enacting changes in key areas, such as eligibility for the scheme or the content of individual plans, would only require “consultation” with states and territories rather than consensus.

Put simply, this proposal was a power grab by the Turnbull government designed to narrow the parameters of the scheme to cut costs. This is unacceptable.

States and territory governments of all persuasions shot this proposal down – but the intent of the Federal government has now been made clear.

Like Medicare before it, the NDIS promises a better life for those most needing support. It’s a visionary policy; the greatest progressive reform of 21st century Australia so far.

This relatively simple concept – that people with disability should be able to get tailored, individualised packages of government support to fund the choices, service and equipment that will help them lead a better life – is backed by a complex system of intergovernmental payments and supports.

As ACT Minister for Disability, I will fight any threat to the NDIS or to the services it will provide to thousands of Canberrans.

The ACT joined as a trial site in July 2014. The ACT government recognised early the immense benefit of this trial – a decision that has borne fruit across the capital, with thousands already transferred to the NDIS.

In fact, by September, we’ll be the first jurisdiction in Australia to fully transition to the NDIS with more than 5000 Canberrans benefitting from it. By 2019-20 the ACT government will commit an estimated $175 million to the scheme so eligible Canberrans can make the choices and take on the control they need to fundamentally improve their lives.

I’m proud to be Minister for Disability in an ACT government so committed to the NDIS. I hear from organisations and individuals alike stories of the great freedoms and optimism this reform is giving people and their families.

People with disability in Australia are on the cusp of receiving the most meaningful improvement to government services in a generation or more. We should not be seeking to deny them that on the basis of an ideological attack or some tick-box on Scott Morrison’s clipboard.

The ACT government won’t support any move to give the Federal government more control over the operation of the NDIS. The NDIS is a revolutionary system of support for people with disability and simply too important to play games with.

Dr Chris Bourke is the ACT Minister for Disability.

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Thank you,

Ian Meikle, editor

Ian Meikle

Ian Meikle

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