Ali France (Dickson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I love the NDIS, and I love that Labor created it and that we will always work to make it better. The NDIS is dignity. It is opportunity and it is independence for people with a disability. It is the gateway to fulfilled, happy and productive lives, but it must deliver. It must shift the dial. It must be safe. It must be equitable. It must be sustainable. And people with a significant disability must be at the centre of the scheme. The public must have confidence in the scheme. Sadly, I think that confidence is wavering. The scheme's social licence is at risk. We took a huge step forward when we set up the NDIS in 2013. I became an amputee in 2011, a couple of years before the scheme was set up, and I experienced the world as a woman with a disability without the NDIS. I've since spoken to many people about the incredible change that it has made to their lives and my life.

When introducing the NDIS legislation, the then prime minister Julia Gillard broke down in tears. She said it was the greatest change to Australian social policy in a generation. But over a decade, under those opposite, the scheme was allowed to become unruly and unsafe, a mess. It is not delivering for the people who need it most. It became a rorter's paradise and a postcode lottery. I know this, providers know this and the general public know this. We are livid that the scheme, over nine years under the coalition, was allowed to disintegrate and become riddled by fraud, inequity and a complete lack of basic safeguards for participants. I know the majority of providers are good, and the needs of people with a disability are at the very heart of what they do. I know good providers want the rorters out too.

As soon as we came to government in 2022, we ordered a review of the NDIS, and what I heard was worse than I had ever anticipated. There were no basic fraud or compliance controls in the nine long years the coalition were running the NDIS. That's not my assessment; that's the assessment of the National Audit Office. Zero. The ANAO found a profound lack of compliance measures, which left participants and providers without the safeguards needed to ensure that funding was being used fairly and effectively to support those who rely on it the most. This bill is part of our commitment to fix that.

The NDIS stands as one of the most significant and transformative social reforms in Australia's history. It was built upon a simple but profoundly powerful promise that Australians living with significant disabilities should have access to the support they need to live with dignity, independence and opportunity to ensure that no-one is left behind because they have a disability. This promise remains as vital and non-negotiable today as it was at the scheme's inception.

Recent inquiries, including the NDIS review and the disability royal commission, made it clear that the system has not lived up to that promise. We saw evidence of abuse, neglect, fraud, inequity and a complete lack of basic safeguards. It is well known that people with a disability in Australia are significantly more likely to be subjected to violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation. That is why these changes are so very, very important. We need more safeguards, more checks, more accountability to protect people with a disability from harm.

When we came to government, we took action to protect the NDIS, investing over $550 million in tackling fraud and noncompliance. This included the establishment of the Fraud Fusion Taskforce and amendments to the NDIS Act. This bill continues our commitment to strengthen and protect the NDIS. It strengthens the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission's regulatory powers and it introduces a stronger penalty framework to reflect the seriousness of the offending conduct and ensure that there are credible deterrents for breaches of the NDIS Act.

The Senate community affairs committee received over 50 submissions on the NDIS commission measures and undertook a public hearing and targeted engagements with peak bodies and those with a disability. The NDIS commission also undertook extensive consultation to inform the development of reforms to address systemic issues of noncompliance and harm.

This bill will also allow for banning orders to be issued to auditors and consultants, giving the NDIS commission the power to restrict unscrupulous providers from promoting products or services that undermine the integrity of the NDIS. We know that the vast majority of NDIS providers do the right thing and provide quality services, but this is about ensuring an integrated system where compliance is straightforward and noncompliance is detected and penalties enforced—one where those that see the NDIS as a get-rich-quick scheme, rather than a disability support scheme, will be restricted, banned and penalised.

For too long, the penalties for wrongdoing within the NDIS have failed to reflect the seriousness of the harm caused. Weak deterrents have allowed a culture of business as usual, even in the face of substandard care or fraud. By modernising and expanding the penalties and offences framework, this bill ensures that the punishment fits the crime. It sends a clear message that exploitation and unsafe practices will no longer be tolerated. Participants deserve a system that actively protects them, and taxpayers deserve confidence that public funds are being used responsibly. These reforms also significantly strengthen the commissioner's ability to impose banning orders. This shift moves the regulator from a reactive stance to a preventive one, stopping harm before it occurs.

Effective regulation also depends on timely access to information. In the past, investigations have been hindered by delays in obtaining essential documentation, allowing wrongdoing to remain hidden for too long. This bill strengthens the commission's powers to inquire and to require information within shorter, more appropriate timeframes. The capacity for swifter action is essential for a regulator that must be proactive and assertive in an evolving market.

The bill also introduces new safeguards for participants who choose to withdraw from the scheme. Leaving the NDIS is a significant life event, and participants must be supported but also protected throughout that transition.

At the same time, the bill authorises the NDIA to move towards a fully electronic claiming system. This modernisation reduces the administrative burden, minimises the risk of error and closes loopholes that have too often been exploited. It is a practical step that strengthens both participant experience and integrity.

These reforms directly address the recommendations of the NDIS review, which called for a more proactive and effective regulatory approach. The commission must be able to regulate the market, not simply react to it, and this bill removes the structural barriers that have historically limited enforcement. It gives the regulator the tools it needs to detect, prevent and respond to breaches with far greater powers and precision.

These changes also support legitimate high-quality providers—ethical operators; those who put participants first—of which there are so many. I meet with so many good, caring providers, and they are just as keen to clean up the system as we are.

A fair and transparent regulatory environment strengthens the reputation of the entire sector. Above all, this bill is about trust. Participants and their families place enormous trust in the NDIS. They trust that the people entering their homes are safe. They trust that the services being invoiced are being delivered. And they trust that, when things go wrong, the government will act. The public have also placed their trust in us to provide proper oversight and systems to ensure taxpayer funds are spent appropriately. This bill honours that trust. It is a necessary step towards a safer, fairer and more sustainable NDIS, one that protects participants, respects taxpayer money and ensures the scheme remains for generations to come.

The 2022 NDIS review was a road map for change—for difficult, hard change. We are on that road, and we are determined to get it done. We must admit that the current system is not equitable, fair or safe. We must admit that the NDIS is not working for everybody. If we want the NDIS system to be the system it was intended to be, to truly provide security and dignity for people with a disability, the NDIS needs the structural change proposed in this bill.

I say to people with a disability and their families: we have your back. We know change is frightening for participants and providers. It's particularly scary for those who rely on the NDIS every single day, to have a shower; to eat fresh, healthy food; to get out into the community; to go to work; to be part of what it means to be human; and to get out into the environment. I say to people with a disability and their families: we will walk with you, and we are listening. We are committed to ensuring the NDIS delivers essential supports to Australians with significant and permanent disability, not just today but for generations to come.

I am incredibly proud to be a member of the Labor Party—the party that introduced this incredible scheme that has transformed the lives of people with a disability and their families right across the country. Our responsibility is to build and to reform the NDIS to ensure that it is fair, consistent and empowering and to make changes that place people with a disability back at its heart. This is about doing what is right—honouring the trust placed in us and ensuring the NDIS continues to provide dignity, opportunity and security for all of those who rely on it. I commend this bill to the House.

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