Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in relation to the so-called National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Getting the NDIS Back on Track No. 1) Bill. At the outset, for completeness and for transparency purposes, I declare that I have a conflict of interest in this space because my youngest daughter, Sarah, is a participant in the scheme. She's one of the 600,000 people on this scheme whose lives have been significantly changed for the better. I thank Julia Gillard, the former Prime Minister, because this scheme was a great scheme. The intent was terrific and it has changed the lives of my daughter and my family, and a lot of my daughter's friends and their families, as well.

There are now some 600,000 Australians who are benefitting from being on the NDIS, but it is irrefutable that the NDIS is falling off the rails.

There is a really good article by Sarah Ison in The Australian today which picks up on a lot of the issues which were identified in estimates last night and over the last couple of days in relation to fraud, and there'll be a lot of discussion around the issues of fraud in relation to the NDIS. A lot of providers will be looking in the mirror this morning and thinking, 'I'm not one of them. I'm not one of the bad guys.' Let's face it, it's always a very small number of bad apples that ruin it for everybody. Most people who are participants in the NDIS are worthy of the support. Most providers providing the support are honest, hardworking people who aren't out there to rip off participants or Australian taxpayers. But, unfortunately, there are those who are seeking to rip off taxpayers. But they're not only ripping off taxpayers; they're ripping off the participants whom this scheme was set up to support, because every dollar that gets fraudulently spent on the NDIS is a dollar that's not spent somewhere else. So all Australian taxpayers and all Australian citizens—everybody in this country—are bearing the brunt of the illegal conduct that has been brought up in Senate estimates.

The fraud and integrity head of the NDIA came to Senate estimates last night and said that up to $2 billion, $2,000 million—let me say that again: $2,000 million—is being inappropriately spent on things like holidays, cars and even illicit drugs. We heard evidence last night of a provider taking a participant to an ATM to get money out so that the participant could be supplied drugs. There are criminal syndicates, criminal crime gangs, which have infiltrated the NDIS. Wherever there is a pot of Commonwealth money, it would seem, it brings out the worst in some of us. This has to stop. We've heard countless stories of NDIS money being spent on prostitutes.

We want a sustainable NDIS system, and I've no doubt that this is a bipartisan view. Do you know what the great thing is about living in Australia, Mr Deputy Speaker Goodenough? The great thing about living in Australia, unlike many other countries, even the United States, is that it doesn't matter where you live, it doesn't matter what your postcode is, it doesn't matter how much money you earn, if you get sick, if you fall over and break an ankle, if you get hit by a bus—whatever it might be—you know that you're going to be taken to a hospital and you're going to receive world's best medical treatment. Not many countries can say that, and it won't cost you any more than what you pay as your Medicare levy. It's universal health care. That's a great thing. In other countries, if you break an ankle, you get cancer or you have a serious illness or injury, whatever it might be, and you can't work, fate has resigned you, and chances are your family, to a life of poverty. That's not the case here in Australia, and we should be incredibly proud of that as a nation.

On this side of the fence, we talk about building people up, we talk about aspiration and we talk about reward for effort. But one of the principal tenants of the Liberal Party is that we care for those who are in genuine need. If you are in genuine need, we believe that you should be looked after appropriately. We don't just cast you asunder. The NDIS is sort of an extension of that. It's for many people who either were born with a serious, significant disability or may acquire that disability through many ways. We, as Australians, will look after you. And that's something that we should take pride in. But I'll tell you what we won't take pride in, and that's being taken for a ride.

Australians will not cop being taken for a ride. When they hear stories of the fraud and integrity manager of the NDIA saying that up to $2 billion is being spent where it shouldn't be, Australians are rightfully waking up this morning and asking serious questions. In his evidence last night, talking about fraudulent practices, the head of fraud and integrity said:

There's case after case after case … 90 per cent of our plan managers that manage between nought and a hundred plans, that's out of 1000 plan managers, have significant indicators of fraud … We've done the analysis on their claiming behaviours … the bar needs to be lifted.

We have got serious systemic problems with the NDIA.

Recently, we have had an explosion of the number of complaints that have been made to my office. I just shot my constituency manager a message this morning, and she tells me that, from this time last year to today, the number of complaints that my office has received has gone up. I'm just one of 151 electorates in this country, and I'm sure that I'm not the only one here. What do you reckon it's gone up by? 10 per cent? 20 per cent? 30 per cent? 100 per cent? 200 per cent? 500 per cent? It's gone up by 1,000 per cent. There has been a 1,000 per cent increase in the last 12 months in the number of complaints from people who are complaining about access to the NDIS or their plans.

So we've got two problems here. On the one hand, we've got fraud being perpetrated by some providers and being perpetrated by crime gangs. Then, on the other hand, we've got people who are already on the NDIS who are waiting a significant amount of time for their plan to be rolled over. Naturally enough, and I would encourage anybody who might be listening to this and anybody who's in this boat, to contact your federal MP—sorry colleagues—and let them know, because not only is it good for us to know what's going on, but we have the ability to speak to the minister and departmental liaison officers. Also, members of parliament should be able to help you.

I really don't doubt—I'm not trying to make this into a political thing—those on the opposite side and I don't doubt the minister's desire to want to make the NDIS work. But we have got very, very serious and significant problems. Going to the bill, I really doubt that this bill is going to solve them.

I was speaking with Marayke Jonkers, who's President of Persons with Disability of Australia. Marayke lives on the Sunshine Coast, is a former Commonwealth gold medallist—I hope I've got that right, Marayke—and is a role model to my daughter, Sarah. Marayke is a champion for people who live with disabilities. I've had discussions with Marayke about this bill and she is as concerned as I am that this bill is not going to achieve the sort of support that people who are on the NDIS need.

Why does she say that? One of Marayke's main concerns is that under this bill someone's package will be lumped into one bucket—if I can put it that way. They'll get a bucket of money. They won't get a line item by line item or certain budgets for certain categories. She's very concerned, and I agree with these concerns, that the access to rights of review under this bill are shrouded in secrecy. Will people have the ability to appeal to the AAT if they get knocked back by the NDIA? Will people be able to appeal certain sums of money in certain categories? There will be very few categories now, so people don't know how much they're getting for certain categories anymore. That's a real problem. (Time expired)

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