Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I move Australian Greens/opposition amendments (1) to (3) on sheet 1443 revised together:

(1) Page 2 (after line 11), after clause 3, insert:

4 Sunset clause

(1) The amendments made to the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 by Schedule 1 of this Act cease to be in force at the start of the day after the end of the period of:

(a) if the Minister has not announced by notifiable instrument under subsection 208A(6) of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 that a copy of the report has been received—12 months beginning on the day Schedule 1 commenced; or

(b) otherwise—2 years beginning on the day Schedule 1 commenced.

(2) However, the amendments set out in Schedule 1 of this Act do not cease to be in force under paragraph (1)(b) if a resolution passed by both Houses of the Parliament provides that the amendments remain in force.

(2) Heading to Schedule 1, page 3 (line 1), omit "Amendments", substitute "Robertson review amendments".

(3) Page 14 (after line 23), at the end of the Bill, add:

Schedule 2 — Quality and safeguarding framework review

National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013

1 Part 4 of Chapter 7 (at the end of the heading)

Add "and other matters".

2 At the end of Part 4 of Chapter 7

Add:

208A Review of quality and safeguarding framework

Review to be conducted

(1) The Minister must cause a review to be conducted of the NDIS quality and safeguarding framework.

(2) The review must commence as soon as practicable, and in any event within 1 month, after the commencement of this section.

(3) Without limiting subsection (1), the persons who undertake the review must consider the effect of the amendments contained in Schedule 1 of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Improving Supports for At Risk Participants) Act 2021 as part of the review.

Report of the review

(4) The persons who undertake the review must give the Minister a written report of the review within 12 months after the commencement of this section.

(5) The Minister must announce, by notifiable instrument, the day the Minister receives the report.

(6) The Minister must table a copy of the report in each House of the Parliament within 10 sittings days of that House after the report is given to the Minister.

Government response

(7) The Minister must cause a report (a government response)to be prepared setting out the Commonwealth Government's response to the report referred to in subsection (6).

(8) The government response must be prepared, as soon as practicable, and in any event within 3 months, after the report referred to in subsection (6) is first tabled in a House of the Parliament.

(9) The Minister must table a copy of the government response in each House of the Parliament within 10 sittings days of that House after the government response is given to the Minister.

Rex Patrick (SA, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just briefly, I want to make a statement in relation to One Nation's second reading debate amendment. I didn't do a speech in the second reading debate. One Nation's amendment was seeking to constrain the amount of money that is being spent on the NDIS, and it was ambiguous in its nature. I just want to put on the record that the providers to the NDIS only ever charge the maximum rate. There's no competition. If you rock up and seek a service and you then mention you're on the NDIS, the full tote odds are paid. There needs to be some mechanism used to address that, because that means that people don't get the maximum service for the money that is available. It means the money's getting chewed up more quickly than it normally does. I ask the minister to consider how that problem might be addressed. It's the typical 'I'm here for a wedding, therefore the price that will be paid is very high'.

Linda Reynolds (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Government Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Patrick for his question and his comments and also for his support for the NDIS and the safeguarding framework. In relation to the particular point that you raise, it is something that has been raised frequently with me as the minister. There is currently a pricing review underway by the NDIS to have a look at the whole pricing structure and rates for the NDIS. The government, in the last budget, is also having a look at how we better integrate the workforces themselves between disability, veterans and aged care. One of the things that I, Minister Hunt and Minister Gee are very conscious of is that we do pay the same providers very different rates for similar services. I think we absolutely need to improve that so that we move towards a single rate that not only doesn't actually inflate the cost of participants' services but also doesn't inadvertently push people, such as veterans, out of the market, which has been reported to be the case.

Malcolm Roberts (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, I echo Senator Patrick's comments in many ways. Senator Hanson and I have been very strong in our comments because we see the need for protecting people with disabilities and supporting them, but we're afraid that the NDIS system, as it is, has been built on very poor foundations. It was a thought bubble by the Labor government to get votes—that's the way we assess it. It was never properly designed. Now it's too easily rorted and it's too bureaucratic in its control, so that the people who deserve support do not have it.

Progress reported.