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

I move:

That this House:

(1) acknowledges that:

(a) 3 December 2020 was International Day of People with Disability; and

(b) the theme for this year's International Day of People with Disability was 'Building Back Better: toward a disability-inclusive, accessible and sustainable post COVID-19 world';

(2) notes that:

(a) the world leading National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is empowering people with disability all over Australia to make decisions about the supports that they receive, and to participate more fully in all aspects of our society as we recover from the COVID-19 crisis;

(b) the NDIS is now available to all eligible Australians, wherever they live;

(c) the NDIS is currently assisting more than 400,000 participants; and

(d) more than 175,000 NDIS participants are receiving supports for the first time;

(3) commends the Government on completing the successful roll out of the NDIS to all states and territories; and

(4) welcomes the Government's extension of temporary additional supports for NDIS participants during the COVID-19 pandemic until February 2021.

Last Thursday was International Day of People with Disability and across the country, where possible, Australians held events and celebrated the day in many unique ways. There are 4.4 million Australians living with disability and, according to the World Health Organization, there are more than one billion others around the globe. Globally, we have a long way to go to improve the lives of people with disability and this tough year has made the challenge even more difficult. This year's theme for International Day of People with Disability is building back better, to order a disability inclusive, accessible and sustainable post-COVID-19 world.

The Morrison government is working hard to make a difference. Following the government's successful rollout, the National Disability Insurance Scheme is now available to all eligible Australians wherever they live and is currently assisting more than 421,000 participants. More than 175,000 are receiving supports for the very first time.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the government ensured that Australia was one of the two earliest nations to have a special dedicated COVID response plan for our disability community. The NDIA made more than $666 million in advanced payments to ensure that more than 5,000 NDIS providers could continue to deliver their desperately needed services. Now, to mark last week's international day, the government released a new Australian Public Service employment strategy, which sets out a goal to increase employment of people with disability across the service to seven per cent by 2025. We know that securing employment is one of the best ways to improve the quality of life of anyone, including people living with a disability. I welcome this very worthwhile initiative. In fact, my daughter Sarah went for her first job interview last week. She should find out about it sometime this week, so good luck, Sarah.

In my own electorate of Fisher, we've recently seen, with the Morrison government's support, new projects aiming to improve the lives of people with some of the most severe disabilities. For more than 20 years, Suncoast Spinners sports club, based at the University of the Sunshine Coast, has offered wheelchair basketball in my community. With the reverse inclusion approach, they made wheelchairs available for able-bodied people to give the sport a go. However, until now, there's been no provision for people with quadriplegia, those who have impairment of all four limbs. Thanks to a Morrison government grand of $243,140 the Suncoast Spinners are offering weekly sessions free of charge in wheelchair rugby—an intense physical team sport for athletes with quadriplegia. I encourage all people to give it a go. The sessions are led by two terrific quadriplegic sportsmen living in our community: Ryan Scott OAM, a long-time captain of the Australian wheelchair rugby team; and Chris Bond OAM, a Paralympic gold medallist and two time gold medallist, alongside the President of Suncoast Spinners, Dr Bridie Kean, who is a dual Paralympic medallist. The grant is paying for the program for two years. I had the opportunity to go along and give it a go earlier this month, and it was the best fun I had as an MP.

Yesterday I saw the results of another Morrison government investment in my community when I took part in the STEPS Autism Treehouse Christmas party. STEPS is a terrific charity in my electorate, which, amongst many other projects, helps young people with a disability to live a fuller life through training and support at the STEPS Pathway College and through the STEPS Autism Treehouse. This coalition government has provided extensive funding to support these programs, including a grant of $487,000 for the STEPS Positive Autism Connection Program, which works with children and young people and their families with autism spectrum disorder to support their social and economic participation within their communities. It was great to see some of the results of the work at the Christmas party this weekend, walking around in the 38-degree heat. There were so many different rides, functions and facilities for kids and their families to enjoy that in a safe environment. A big shout-out to Ariana, who turned out on Santa's Harley-Davidson.

These projects are just a couple of the many that this government is investing in to help ensure Australia is an inclusive and accessible environment for people with a disability. I look forward to seeing the leading role that I'm sure Australians living with disability will take with the support and to build back better from COVID-19.

Trent Zimmerman (North Sydney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Fisher, and of course we wish Sarah well with her job application next week. We hope her future employer doesn't hold her paternal heritage against her! Is the motion seconded?

Tim Wilson (Goldstein, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd like to second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Kristy McBain (Eden-Monaro, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Firstly, I say thank you to the member for Fisher for this opportunity to reflect on the lives of people with disability in the mighty Eden-Monaro. We have much to celebrate in the communities that I serve when it comes to being inclusive of people with disability. One such example exists in the town of Bega, at the southern end of my electorate. The Bega Valley is home to Tulgeen Disability Services, which has been providing services for people with a disability for over 40 years. From humble beginnings shaped by parents and strong community support, Tulgeen is now a significant force in the Bega Valley's economy, culture and spirit. The Bega Valley community has embraced Tulgeen and the people it supports in an open-hearted, good-natured, country kind of way.

People living with a disability, whether those disabilities are physical or cognitive, are part of the day-to-day buzz on Bega's main street. I'm thinking of conversations with people like Benny with his commentary on the weekend's football games. Whether that be on the Newcastle Knights or the Hawthorn Hawks, it certainly always brings a smile to my face. Around these friendly, everyday interactions, the wider community is keeping check and adding their own layer of care and support to those vulnerable people who are now central to Bega's identity. Sharing day-to-day life with people with disabilities over the last four decades has made the Bega Valley community stronger, deeper and more tolerant.

Tulgeen offers paid, supported employment within four social and disability enterprises. People with disability are empowered to learn, maintain and expand workplace skills and experience, with a view to moving to open employment. But there is more to life than work, which is something we should all be remembering. Tulgeen offers a range of lifestyle activities designed to build connection with the wider community, build the confidence of clients and establish ways of communication and expression. Tulgeen's Art in the Garage program is a thriving activity where clients who are interested in the arts are mentored by practising artists to develop their creativity and build on their skills. During the year, artworks are chosen to be exhibited in local and interstate galleries, libraries and other public facilities. Artworks sold at these events earn the artist a commission, with many of the artists becoming very well known and their works are often in hot demand.

Tulgeen has always been future focused and, with the support of the New South Wales government, construction is currently underway on a purpose-built facility in Bega to provide supported accommodation for people with disabilities. This new infrastructure builds on Tulgeen's long history of in-home support services. The health and disability sector is the Bega Valley's largest employer, accounting for almost 16 per cent of the local jobs. In the September quarter, it injected $6 million into the local economy. As we look to renew and strengthen our community in the wake of prolonged drought, bushfires and COVID-19, the potential of the care economy is obvious, especially as we look to build on Labor's vision for the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

We should all celebrate the fact that the NDIS is now available to all eligible Australians. The scheme born of great Labor leaders like Jenny Macklin, Bill Shorten and Julia Gillard is now assisting 400,000 people. The freedom, choice and control the NDIS has delivered people with disability, and their families and friends, marks a significant step forward for this country. As with any reform of this size, constant refinement is critical, and I urge the government to continue the investment and grow the scheme. All too often we hear the stories of frustration as fragile people try their best to navigate the bureaucracy. The challenges people with disability face in their day-to-day lives should not be compounded by a scheme designed to enrich their lives. There is a real sense that there simply aren't enough workers within the NDIS itself or in the community based disability workforce. The Productivity Commission estimates we need approximately 95,000 additional full-time-equivalent workers. That was the estimate in 2014. More than six years on, we need to know the government are doing everything they can to expand the disability workforce. My vision is that every Australian town can celebrate and welcome the contribution people with disability make to community life, just like the Bega Valley does. For that to happen, we need to commit ourselves to the continual improvement and proper funding of the NDIS.

Gladys Liu (Chisholm, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just last week we had the International Day of People with Disability, a day when we are all encouraged to focus on raising awareness and understanding of the issues experienced by people living with a disability. In the spirit of this important initiative, I would like to take this moment to talk about the crucial role played by the NDIS this year and the Morrison government's plan to deliver ambitious and much needed reform to the scheme. There are around 4.3 million people in this country who have a disability, and our government understands the importance of the NDIS to these Australians. But the NDIS does more than support those with a disability. It gives all Australians peace of mind: if an Australian, their child or a loved one is born with, or acquires, a permanent and significant disability they can feel safe in the knowledge that they will get the support they need.

Through the significant challenges of this year the NDIS's role has been critical, and the Morrison government has stepped in where necessary to ensure that people with disability remain safe and continue to receive the disability support they need. In March my good friend the Minister for Government Services, Stuart Robert, acted quickly to provide assistance to NDIS participants and providers, ensuring the viability of the latter through COVID-19. This included a one-month advance payment for registered NDIS providers, which saw $666 million of advance payments made to 5,161 eligible NDIS providers to provide immediate cash flow relief.

We are on track to deliver the most substantial reforms to the NDIS since its establishment. In August the government released its response to the Tune review of the NDIS, supporting in principle all of the recommendations. Unfortunately the coronavirus has delayed implementation of these recommendations, but we are now moving forward with an urgency that recognises the importance of the planned reforms. The reform package will deliver on the final elements of the Productivity Commissioner's original design for the NDIS and on the promise of the NDIS to provide Australians with a permanent and significant disability choice and control over their flexible support package to achieve their goals. Key changes include the introduction of independent assessments and the implementation of the Participant Service Guarantee, a core commitment the government made at the 2019 election.

Recently I had the opportunity to visit a fantastic local organisation supporting people living with a disability in my electorate of Chisholm. Waverley Helpmates supports, trains and employs people with disabilities in our community. They are committed to the belief that people with disabilities should have the same employment opportunities as any other person. Those whom I had the chance to speak with at Helpmates were positive about the recommendations of the Tune review and our governments acceptance of them. With the Morrison government looking to implement crucial reforms to the NDIS from mid-2021, I look forward to working with members of my community, including those involved with Waverley Helpmates.

Helen Haines (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Fisher for this important motion. In regional Victoria in the 1960s, few people knew what autism was. For people with autism and their families there were even fewer services to support them. Mansfield resident, Dr Joan Curtis, was the mother of one such child and, after looking around for support for her autistic son, Jonathan, and seeing none, in 1968 she established what would go on to become Mansfield Autism Statewide Services. Joan's philosophy was that the best teacher for the child is the parent and the family, and that's still the guiding philosophy of MASS today.

Fifty years ago, Dr Curtis believed in the importance of exercise, nature and healthy eating in supporting children with autism and, half a century later, those ideas are now backed up with substantial clinical evidence. Today, MASS is a Mansfield institution. Its mission is to support children with autism and their families from right across Victoria with person-centred, evidence-based holistic care. Thanks to the NDIS, where individuals can choose the services that meet their needs, demand for services from MASS now significantly outstrips what it can provide in its current location. MASS is planning a substantial new facility—a therapeutic care farm—that would allow it to become a nationally significant provider of autism services and care for hundreds of people every year. On a plot of land in the rolling green hills on the road to Mount Buller, MASS is planning a new day school, a series of residences for respite accommodation, a small retreat for the accessible tourism market and recreational facilities, including a hardcourt, swimming pool, walking and cycle paths and an upgraded equine facilitated learning centre.

A few months ago, I was able to visit MASS and inspect the place for its planned expansion. Director, Simone Reeves, and strategic projects adviser, Judy Dixon, showed me how the new facility would transform MASS's ability to support people with autism. They described to me how some children with autism who are completely non-verbal can come alive when they're with animals, and how some children who struggle with attention span can become completely focused when working in the veggie garden.

In July of this year, the entire MASS community held its breath when one of its students, William Callaghan, was reported missing on Mount Disappointment, not far from Mansfield. William, who had been a student at MASS since the age of four, was thankfully found safe and well. After his arrival home, it was to MASS that his mother Penny turned to for respite care to help William and the family readjust after that most traumatic ordeal. Penny said, 'I contacted them and said, "I desperately needed support," and they provided a safe place for both my boys for four nights.'

For a few days in July, William's ordeal brought attention to the care of children with autism and the support that places like MASS can provide. But if MASS is to continue to provide these critical services into the future and if families like the Callaghans are to continue to have somewhere to turn to for support, we need to make investments into these services. MASS needs $28 million to finance their planned expansion. In September, I submitted a proposal to the education minister—himself a Mansfield native—to support the plans. He knows this place well. The project would not only allow MASS to provide 3,000 respite nights per year, support 102 children through day and term placements and increase total client capacity from 220 to 480 but it would also be an economic boom for the town.

It would create 80 new certificate III and certificate IV training placements, 60 new teacher placements and 32 allied health placements. It would double the number of jobs in MASS from 126 to 250 and generate over $54 million in economic activity for the community over the next four years. At a time when demand for disability care services is higher than ever and when we need to be investing for jobs in regional areas, investing in MASS makes sense on every front. MASS only exists because of the incredible dedication of some wonderful community members: Dr Joan Curtis, who's only just retired from the board of MASS after 50 years, and Simone Reeves, who came to Mansfield decades ago as a volunteer to MASS and has never left. To mark this year's International Day of People with Disability I'd like to recognise the work of each of these individuals and the many more who have built this Mansfield institution over decades. I call on the government to come to the table with investment and help MASS transform the lives of people with autism for many decades to come.

Fiona Martin (Reid, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 3 December we marked the International Day of People with Disability. As an educational and development psychologist who has researched and worked with people with autism spectrum disorder and people with intellectual disabilities, I feel privileged to contribute in this area, especially through my work on the Joint Standing Committee on the NDIS and as co-chair of Parliamentary Friends of Disability and Parliamentary Friends of Hearing Health and Deafness.

If we rewind the clock 20 years to when I first started my career we can see significant improvements to the lives of people with disability. It is incredible to see the way the NDIS has grown over the last seven years. The NDIS is now available to all eligible Australians no matter where they live. It is currently assisting over 400,000 participants. In my electorate of Reid 1,655 constituents benefit from this scheme, providing greater support and choice in their lives. I commend the Australian government on the successful rollout of the scheme. I would say that this is one of the most important social reforms in Australian history. I proudly note the bipartisan support for the NDIS, which will entrench the program into the fabric of Australian life for years to come. Within the next five years the NDIS will enable an estimated 500,000 Australians who have permanent and significant disability to access supports, many for the first time.

The theme of this year's International Day of People with Disability is 'Building Back Better: toward a disability-inclusive, accessible and sustainable post COVID-19 world'. The coronavirus crisis has disrupted every aspect of Australian life but it has especially impacted people with disabilities and their families. The coronavirus places people with disability at increased risk from the virus itself, and there's the serious impact of having routines and support services disrupted.

When coronavirus hit our shores the Morrison government acted quickly to protect the overall population and in particular our most vulnerable Australians. Australia was one of the first nations to have a special dedicated COVID-19 response plan for our disability community. In consultation with governments at all levels, disability and health sectors, academic and NDIS participants, we developed a plan that puts people with disabilities at the centre. Flexible approaches to service delivery such as telehealth, home medicines delivery and infection training meant that those in the disability sector had the best possible defence against the coronavirus. In this period the Morrison government made sure that our NDIS participants had a range of temporary measures to support them through the crisis. The NDIA made $666 million in advanced payments to more than 5,000 NDIS providers, ensuring much needed financial supports and continuity of services.

I also want to commend the carers, health workers and service providers for the work they do across my electorate of Reid to ensure that people with disabilities can reach their full potential and have the best possible quality of life available. For instance, Mr David Clarke, the Chief Executive Officer of ParaQuad New South Wales, located in Newington, makes sure that those living with spinal cord industry have the advocacy and support needed to live a life of choice and independence. MAX employment in Burwood works closely with clients who have a disability to help them engage in the Australian government's Jobactive program. They are one of the many services in our community that help to connect clients who have a disability to meaningful employment, which provides greater financial independence and a sense of purpose.

The Sir Rodan and Lady Cutler Foundation offer transport to members of the community who are disabled so they can attend medical appointments. This year I delivered on a 2019 election commitment to supply a $60,000 wheelchair-accessible vehicle for their use. I'm so pleased that the Morrison government could support their organisation in this way. Eurella Community Services in Burwood, led by CEO, Patricia Abraham, provides early intervention, in-home services, social programs and employment opportunities for people with disability. They do a great job and are always so welcoming to the wider community. And Aspire Early Intervention in Newington, led by Dianne Verstappen, provides early intervention programs to children with disability.

I could go on, because in Reid we have many organisations assisting people with disability. Our local service providers, carers and community groups put their clients at the centre of what they do. We owe them a debt of gratitude.

Susan Templeman (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm pleased to speak to this motion, but I'm staggered that in crying about the positives of the NDIS those opposite seem to have no idea of the harm being done to too many people as they struggle with plans and plan reviews.

No-one needs the National Disability Insurance Scheme until they do, and any of us could find ourselves needing to use the system. That was the case for Tony and Kenn. They had been together for many years before applying for the NDIS. Kenn's acceptance into it came a week after his death. Tony's experience at that time has put him off applying for himself now that he has his own disabilities. This should be a system that supports people, not scares them, or frustrates them or reduces them to tears. But that's what it's doing. Here's a message I received on Friday from a woman who's been an advocate for her own child and supported other parents for years. She is formidable, but right now she's desperate. She says she feels like she's a breaking point, having had $35,000 cut from their plan—a 57 per cent cut. She really is at the end of her tether and needs to seek support.

The NDIS is doing to some people what robodebt did to many; it's pushing them to the edge. It's sending them for their own medication and mental health plans as they cope with the depression, anxiety and stress of supporting someone on the NDIS. The government cannot allow this to continue; they cannot ignore the pleas for help from so many people. It's the introduction of independent assessments, which are seen as a way of reducing costs, making it harder to claim and taking away supports people are currently receiving. There were stories like those in The Saturday Paper last weekend which point to an agenda by this government to reduce the control people have over their own lives. That's the opposite of the aims of the NDIS.

To get a snapshot of the current situation in the Blue Mountains and the Hawkesbury in my electorate of Macquarie, I collected case studies—dozens of them, in fact, in recent weeks. I asked people about the good, the bad and the ugly. Some have shared the positives of the fact that when they do have funds for therapies how those can help with mobility, emotional health, occupational therapy and exercise. Nathaniel, from Winmalee, said, 'It's been a lifeline,' while he tries to fix his life. But there are way too many failures. One person pointed to going to numerous appointments with her sister, saying the same things over and over again and being stressed because the system is so hard to understand. She said, 'My sister cannot navigate it at all'. There was a woman who manages 30 clients with primary autism. She said that she faces with them review meetings with arrogant staff and that she spends unpaid hours counselling clients and parents because they didn't get the things that they needed.

Another care worker has raised real concerns about being on the inside and seeing how clients are charged very high rates. Participants and carers talk about the high cost of reports—not just in the cost of money but the cost of time and the cost of stress. The plan review process is the source of much pain: 'Gruelling,' Lauren describes it as. There's a lack of transparency around plan reviews and people have to spend hours emailing, phoning and attending appointments in the two months leading up to reviews, only to find that reports are ignored by planners. One person described planners who have no genuine understanding of disability and little sympathy for what often feels like a desperate situation.

These are the sorts of comments that people have given me. These are NDIS participants, parents and family members, or, sometimes, partners, and they cope with a lot. I asked parents what their worst day looks like, and these were some of the things they told me: aggressive outbursts and their other children being exposed to violence; meltdowns from the moment their child wakes up to when he goes to sleep—'meltdown' was probably the most commonly used word in the case studies I was given; and waking exhausted, having been woken four times each night by their eight year old high-needs son, who is constantly with them until he finally falls asleep at 10:30 pm and they go to bed anxious and worried about how to help them. This is even when plans are good. Claire, who has a son with autism and ADHD, says on her worst day she wants to curl up and cry. In fact, lots of mums admit to crying at the end of the day, or during the day, for feeling like a failure. They talk about anxiety, stress, doubt and shame for not being able to provide the help their child needs. When someone says to me, 'This is all too much; I'm a resilient person but even I'm getting broken,' I know something is wrong. A system that is breaking people is a system that is broken. It can be fixed, but it is a test of whether those opposite really believe in the NDIS.

Debate adjourned.