Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Minister for Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The Social Services Legislation Amendment (Transition Mobility Allowance to the National Disability Insurance Scheme) Bill 2016 introduces the 2016-17 budget measure to transition the Mobility Allowance program into the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). Mobility Allowance is being transitioned into the NDIS to ensure that the NDIS is the main program of support for people with a disability who need assistance to enable them to fully engage in the workforce and other economic activities.

The NDIS is the new way of providing individualised support for eligible people with a permanent disability or a significant functional impairment. The NDIS will provide about 460,000 Australians under the age of 65 with a disability with the reasonable and necessary supports they need to live fruitful and successful lives.

As part of the previous Labor government's decision to commit to the NDIS in the 2013-14 budget, it was agreed at that time that the Mobility Allowance would be one of 17 commonwealth programs that would be transferred to the NDIS to assist in funding its implementation. The implementation of this decision would have required the progressive closing of Mobility Allowance in NDIS sites from 2016-17 in order to align the Mobility Allowance payment settings with the NDIS funding estimates.

There are currently around 60,000 Mobility Allowance recipients. However, the NDIS trials have demonstrated that around 30 per cent (18,000) of these Mobility Allowance recipients will likely be ineligible to receive an NDIS package of support. This group includes around 4,000 recipients who would be aged 65 years or older and approximately 14,000 recipients who would be aged under 65 years.

This is in large part due to Mobility Allowance having a much broader eligibility criteria than the NDIS. The group of recipients aged under 65 who are expected not to transition to the NDIS includes recipients who have mild to moderate or non-permanent disability and would therefore not qualify for a package of support under the NDIS eligibility rules.

Without additional funding, the closure of the Mobility Allowance would have resulted in current recipients of Mobility Allowance that are ineligible for the NDIS not being provided with continuity of support as agreed by governments.

This government is working to ensure that those not expected to transition into the NDIS continue to receive the support they need.

This bill presents amendments to the Social Security Act 1991 and related legislation as part of the transitioning of Mobility Allowance to the NDIS. It will ensure that continuity of support is provided to current recipients of Mobility Allowance who may not be eligible for the NDIS.

As a first step, the government has provided $46½ million in the 2016-17 budget to ensure that such people continue to receive support through the Mobility Allowance program in the short to medium term.

The government is also considering how such people, including participants in any of the other transitioning programs who are assessed to be ineligible for an NDIS package, will be supported over the long term under continuity of support arrangements.

To support the transition of Mobility Allowance funding into the NDIS, this bill will align eligibility rules for new claimants from 1 January 2017 with the NDIS eligibility rules, to ensure that the program is targeted to those who need support the most while they wait to be transitioned into the NDIS.

Under current arrangements, Mobility Allowance is a very broad program which is not particularly well targeted. The payment has not led to any significant increase in the workforce participation of recipients. This is partly because, despite its policy objectives, there is no requirement for Mobility Allowance payments to actually be spent on transport needs or in ways that directly assist a recipient's workforce participation.

There are several differences in the eligibility requirements for assistance through Mobility Allowance and the NDIS, including age of eligibility and the disability requirements. Access to the NDIS is limited to those who apply before turning 65 years, whereas there is no current upper age limit for Mobility Allowance.

NDIS eligibility requires that a person's disability is likely to be permanent and substantially affect an individual's capacity for social and economic participation. Mobility Allowance eligibility requirements are far broader, requiring merely a disability that affects an individual's ability to use public transport for an extended period of one year or more.

To support the transition of Mobility Allowance funding to the NDIS, Mobility Allowance will only be available to new claimants aged under 65 years—that is, it will become consistent with the NDIS rules.

The disability criteria will also be aligned with the NDIS disability criteria, which means that new claimants must have a permanent or significant disability which prevents them from using public transport without substantial assistance, and be undertaking paid work or vocational training.

These changes will ensure that those who become eligible for the payment from 1 January 2017 are people who are more likely to be eligible for NDIS support.

These changes to eligibility will not apply to existing Mobility Allowance recipients. However, recipients who lose entitlement to the payment and wish to reclaim Mobility Allowance will be assessed under the new rules.

Consistent with the practice implemented during the NDIS trials, a person who receives an NDIS package of support will not be eligible to receive Mobility Allowance payments at the same time.

In addition, and to ensure that eligible participants fully utilise the range of services that will be available to them in the NDIS, this bill introduces amendments to prevent a person who receives a package of NDIS supports from being able to opt out of the NDIS in order to claim Mobility Allowance. This means that once a recipient transfers into the NDIS, Mobility Allowance will no longer be an available option for them, even if they discontinue their program of support.

Mobility allowance recipients currently receive a 12-week continuation period, during which they may continue to receive a payment while not participating in a qualifying activity. For example, a recipient whose casual employment is completed can continue to receive the payment for 12 weeks while they look for another job or seek to engage in another activity. However, the existence of the 12-week continuation period has not led to any appreciable increase in the level of workforce participation of mobility allowance recipients.

This bill will reduce the continuation period during which a recipient continues to receive mobility allowance while they are no longer engaged in a qualifying activity, from 12 weeks to four weeks.

Through aligning eligibility of mobility allowance with the NDIS and these other additional measures, the vast majority of mobility allowance recipients will be receiving individualised supports through the NDIS when it reaches full scheme in 2019-20.

The amendments in this bill will result in the closure of the mobility allowance program from 1 July 2020, following the full rollout of the NDIS. The closure of the mobility allowance program will also be another step towards this government's commitment to simplifying the welfare payment system.

As mobility allowance is a supplementary payment designed to assist with transport costs for eligible recipients undertaking approved activities, closing the program will not disadvantage most recipients as the payment will be replaced with individualised supports provided through the NDIS.

Current recipients of mobility allowance who are still in receipt of the payment as at 30 June 2020, as they have been found to be ineligible for the NDIS, will continue to receive support in the longer term pursuant to a commitment to provide continuity of support for existing Commonwealth clients.

It is important to note that there is also a range of other assistance programs available to help individuals who will no longer have access to mobility allowance and who are found to be ineligible for the NDIS. Some of these assistance programs provide services to address mobility issues faced by individuals. Assistance programs available to these individuals include:

Eligibility for social security pensions or benefits will also not be affected by these amendments. The majority (notably, 90 per cent) of mobility allowance recipients are currently eligible to receive a primary income support payment, such as disability support pension. Most of these recipients also have automatic access to concession cards and a range of supports employment services and training opportunities through their jobactive and Disability Employment Services providers.

The objectives of this bill are consistent with the government's commitment to the full implementation of the NDIS. Together with the transition of other programs, this bill ensures that the NDIS is the main program of support for people with a disability who need assistance to enable them to fully engage in the workforce and other economic activities. I commend the bill to the House.

Debate adjourned.

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