Jo Briskey (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak today on the motion before the House regarding the NDIS service delivery arrangements and to make clear the importance of getting these settings right for both participants and providers. The National Disability Insurance Scheme is one of the most significant social reforms in our nation's history. It is changing lives, helping more than 717,000 Australians with disability to live more independently, to work, to study and to exercise real choice and control over their lives. That is something the parliament should always be proud of. But we also know that, with such major national reform, we must always be working to strengthen the scheme, and I remain committed to playing my role on behalf of my community in Maribyrnong, those who rely on the NDIS, those who work in it and all involved. It is incumbent on all of us in this place to ensure that the NDIS goes from strength to strength, and that is what this government is focused on.

The recent annual price review was about making NDIS pricing fairer, more transparent and more consistent with what other Australians pay. The review analysed over 10 million therapy transactions benchmarked against Medicare, private health insurance and 13 comparable government schemes. It found what we had long heard about anecdotally—that there was an NDIS equivalent of a 'wedding tax' afoot and that people with disability were too often being charged far more for the same services, sometimes nearly 70 per cent more. That's not fair. People with disability should not be asked to pay more than any other Australian for life-changing supports like physiotherapy, podiatry or occupational therapy. It is also not fair that high and unclear travel claims were eating into people's budgets, limiting their access to other vital supports.

Let me specifically address the claims made in this motion about transport allowances. The facts are clear: no other comparable scheme compensates therapists for travel as generously as the NDIS does. Providers can claim up to half the therapy rate for travel time, around $90 an hour, on top of kilometre allowances, tolls, parking and even flights and accommodation for remote areas. To suggest otherwise is simply false. Let's not forget that, when those opposite were in government, they did nothing to fix travel access for participants in regional and remote communities. For them to now cry foul on transport is nothing short of hypocrisy. This government, unlike the coalition, is dealing with the issue honestly, ensuring fairness for participants while still recognising the extra challenges faced by rural and remote Australians. The changes we are making from this review mean that participants will pay fairer prices. They mean our frontline disability support workers will get the pay rise they deserve, and they mean that dodgy providers who seek to overcharge will no longer be able to do so unchecked.

I understand there has been some concern around the speed of these changes and how providers and participants will adjust. More than 4,500 providers attended virtual information sessions in June and July, and peak organisations such as the Australian Physiotherapy Association, National Disability Services and the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation have also been consulted directly. We also know that there are unique challenges in our rural and remote communities. That is why the scheme continues to provide generous travel loadings—40 per cent in remote areas and 50 per cent in very remote areas, well above what is provided under comparable schemes. Where necessary, participants in these areas can agree to cover additional transport costs, such as flights or accommodation, to ensure access to supports.

We should be clear: no comparable scheme, as I said, compensates travel as generously as the NDIS. But we must also strike the balance, ensuring fairness for participants and protecting taxpayer investment and, importantly, the sustainability of the scheme for generations to come. This government will always work in good faith with the disability community. We will consult, listen and adjust where needed, But let us not lose sight of the bigger picture: these changes are about fairness, transparency and strengthening the NDIS for the people it serves. At the heart of this debate are Australians with disability—Australians who deserve the dignity of fair pricing, who deserve to see their budgets go further and who deserve a scheme that will endure for the decades to come. I commend the government's approach, and I commend this House to keep participants, their families and the sustainability of the NDIS at the centre of this discussion.

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