Geoff Lyons (Bass, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am pleased to rise in the House today to speak on the motion proposed by the member for Ryan on primary language disorder. This is an important issue, and I wish to share with the House some recent findings. Tasmanian researcher Belinda Jessup of the Tasmanian Department of Education last year completed her PhD on primary language disorder. She found that 41.2 per cent of Bass prep pupils have some form of the disorder; that 18.2 per cent of the general school population in Bass have this disorder; that primary language disorder has no obvious genetic cause, nor is it socioeconomic; and that it is demonstrated in kinder and prep as children not having comprehension and language skills. Belinda also found that primary language disorder leads to low self-confidence, low self-esteem, bad behaviour issues, antisocial issues and trouble with the law. It is more frequent in boys. It is clear that this is a problem, and I commend Belinda for her efforts and interest in this important area. Other research shows that early intervention through speech pathology is critical.

The St Giles society is Tasmania's largest provider of public speech pathology and it is a fantastic organisation. St Giles was founded in 1937 as a response to the polio epidemic. The organisation has since truly flourished through two polio outbreaks and the deinstitutionalisation of children's disability services, and it is evolving to meet the current disability reforms towards the provision of the National Disability Insurance Scheme. St Giles, just on Friday night, celebrated 75 years of service to the Tasmanian community. I thank each and every one of its staff and volunteers for the great work they do. St Giles was founded by the community for the community and this underpins everything it does.

This government is committed to improving the lives of Australians with disability, and this is demonstrated by our actions since 2007. St Giles, in Launceston, has certainly been the beneficiary of this commitment, with the federal government providing it with $6.8 million in the 2012-13 budget for paediatric services in Tasmania.

Under Australia's fragmented disability service systems many people cannot get the support that their families need. The people missing out include children with disability, many of whom can benefit greatly when they get early help in their lives. Supporting kids with disability through early intervention can make a huge difference to their development and gives them the best chance to make the most of their lives. This is particularly the case for children with primary language disorder. My wife's nephew, in fact, had early intervention and now he is a carpenter working in business and making his way in life.

Since 2008 we have assisted more than 25,000 children with a disability to access early intervention services through the Better Start for Children with Disability program and the Helping Children with Autism Program. So our extra support for children with disability is already making a difference and I am very pleased about that. But we know there are still gaps and there are still inconsistencies. I know this from my time as the business manager at Launceston General Hospital and before that as the manager of Beaconsfield Hospital. We are leading the way to reform Australia's disability system through the National Disability Insurance Scheme, a true Labor reform in the tradition of Medicare. The coalition had 12 years to act on services for people with a disability and they sat on their hands. They stood by while demand grew for disability services, and disability pensioners struggled with the cost of living. They failed to invest in disability services and they failed to support students with disability. The NDIS is a fundamental change to how we will deliver disability care and support.

Late in November last year I received an email from the mother of girl in my electorate, Mrs Ruth Symons. Ruth's daughter Katherine has a disability and she shared with me her struggles. Ruth wants the very best for her daughter. She said:

The chance to have consistency of care for Katherine. To be able to take some control of the care that she receives and the care she will need. To not feel threatened by agencies or Service providers for questioning their services or their lack of outcomes. To have a choice and a voice! BUT above all the chance for her to reach her full potential.

Our $1 billion investment in launch sites shows how serious we are about the NDIS. How people acquire their disability should not determine their support. I support this motion.

Debate interrupted.

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