Dorinda Cox (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I wish to add my voice on this issue and echo the statements made by my colleagues who've spoken on this very important matter. There are very few times when we agree with the opposition, but we agree with their commentary around this. It's particularly relevant that coming out of this budget we all had some hope. We had some hope that with a new government there'd be change and new policy, as Senator Waters outlined. But we learned that $74 billion would be cut from the NDIS. That is beyond acceptable for those disabled people across Australia, the ones that my colleague here from Western Australia, Senator Steele-John, does so much amazing work with. Thank you for your work, Senator Steele-John.

So much for Labor stating that no-one will be left behind. When you have that in your campaign slogan, when that is your mantra, you actually have to walk that on. You have to continue to do that and not leave people behind. When you deliver your budget and set your priorities you are not to leave people behind, and that includes disabled people in this country. It's shameful that members of this government sit in this chamber and hold their heads high when they're doing this to disabled people, who do not trust the major parties of this country because of the experience they've had over the last decade. They continue to be stabbed in the back by the Liberals, who did it for a decade, and now Labor, who have picked up the mantle and continue to do this to disabled people across this country.

I want to talk specifically about the double disadvantage of First Nations people in this country who are disabled. The First Peoples Disability Network of Australia have done some incredible work in fighting for the NDIS to be better supported for First Nations people across this country. They estimate there are actually 60,000 First Nations people who should—'should' is the operative word here—be in the NDIS, but in reality there are far fewer disabled people getting the support that they deserve, and there are many reasons why. They include spending years on long waiting lists to access NDIS's assessment process. There are lots of First Nations people who live in rural and remote areas, meaning that sometimes they actually can't get that access. It is only available to those who have the means and capacity to travel hundreds of kilometres to access these services. You might need to have a car. You might also need to have someone else drive that car, depending on what your disability is. You've got to pay for fuel, have the time to drive for hours and pay for accommodation if you can't make the trip in one day. These costs add up very quickly, meaning it simply isn't feasible for many First Nations people. Let's not forget, everyone, that we are in a cost-of-living crisis; yet we expect people First Nations people with disabilities who live in rural and remote areas to travel to those services.

I'm sure people in this chamber don't need a geography lesson, but Australia is actually vast, and it's a very spread-out nation. That's especially true for my home state of Western Australia. In a previous life, before I entered this workplace, I worked for a place in the Goldfields. It is quite a remote part of Western Australia, and the nearest service centre is approximately 600 kilometres from Perth. Imagine a First Nations disabled person, whose first language might not be English, having to travel to get services under the NDIS. Not only are there cultural insensitivities in mainstream disability services; there are simply not enough of them. The measly $1 million sugar hit, the little sprinkles that have been given out—I'm going to borrow Senator Waters's description—are not enough for those potential 60,000 First Nations people on the NDIS. This is a big slap in the face for disabled people, and for my people in particular.

Asking questions on notice in this place is important. It's part of a healthy and transparent democracy. Significant changes have been announced in the budget. We need those answers to be able to relate those questions to our constituents. Labor promised 'no big changes without co-design'. Co-design means you involve people, not just rip $74 billion out of the budget for the NDIS. (Time expired)