Tim Ayres (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Trade) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you. That is actually very helpful—the way that you described that—because it does lead us to more clarity around these questions, I think. I want to come back to the original point that you made about who does the assessments. It certainly is the case that, right now, there is some ambiguity about that question as people—parents or disabled people themselves—go through the journey that they go through of reaching that diagnosis. It is one of the recommendations of the review—and it's anticipated for one of the outcomes of this process—that there not be a requirement for doubling up on the functional assessment process. Indeed—I'll just check with the team—that flows through to the needs assessment process as well. After that work that has been largely privately funded, people won't be asked to shell out again for an additional process to satisfy the functional assessment in order to enter the scheme. I'll just add the qualification, though, that there may be a requirement for additional information that may arise in individual circumstances. But the principle is the one that I think you have alluded to in your question.

In terms of who does the assessments and how that tool is applied, there are questions about that that we cannot answer because the purpose of this act is, as we went backwards and forwards about a bit last week, to enable a process to be undertaken that will determine all of that. There are proper consultation processes and safeguards for the parliament in that process too, and it needs to come back here. But it commences that process, with the authority of legislation, to determine the framework that is applied. You are correct: the aspiration of the government here is to reduce costs in those kinds of undertakings, and that should have the benefit of having a positive impact not only for people who are paying for assessments now but also by not adding additional cost and duplication to the scheme.