Nicolette Boele (Bradfield, Independent) | Hansard source

I move the amendment circulated in my name:

(1) Schedule 3, page 100 (after line 6), after Part 2, insert:

Part 2A — Significant NDIS rules

National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013

13A After section 209D

Insert:

209E Additional consultation requirements for certain National Disability Insurance Scheme rules

(1) This section applies to National Disability Insurance Scheme rules made for the purposes of any of the following provisions:

(a) a provision relating to functional capacity assessments or assessment methodologies;

(b) a provision relating to eligibility criteria or early intervention requirements;

(c) a provision relating to the determination of supports or the setting of funding levels.

(2) Before making rules to which this section applies, the Minister must:

(a) publish an exposure draft of the proposed rules; and

(b) allow a period of not less than 28 days beginning on the day the exposure draft is published (the consultation period) during which persons may make submissions on the proposed rules; and

(c) take reasonable steps to consult the following persons during the consultation period:

(i) people with disability;

(ii) organisations representing the disability community and disability sector, such as Disability Representative and Carer Organisations;

(iii) any other persons the Minister considers appropriate.

(3) Before making rules to which this section applies, the Minister must publish:

(a) a statement summarising the feedback received during the consultation period and the Minister's response to that feedback; and

(b) a disability impact statement setting out the expected effect of the proposed rules on participants and prospective participants.

I move this amendment to strengthen consultation requirements for the key National Disability Insurance Scheme rules. This amendment goes to a simple but fundamental principle that decisions about people with disability should not be made without them. It speaks to the profound truth contained in the slogan 'Nothing about us without us'. As this bill stands, critical aspects of the scheme, including eligibility criteria, functional capacity assessment, assessment methodologies and funding rules, are not set out in the primary legislation but left instead to future rules made by the minister. Those rules will determine who can access the NDIS, how their needs are assessed and what supports they ultimately receive. These are crucial considerations with serious implications for people's lives, and yet there is currently no minimum requirement in this bill for how people with disability are consulted before the rules are made. This is a serious gap.

The independent NDIS review released in 2025 was clear in calling for deep and ongoing consultation on reforms with people with disability, their families, their carers, representative organisations and disability service providers and workers. While the new technical advisory group will undertake consultations when developing their expert advice, the legislation does not set out how comprehensive this consultation needs to be, and, although consultation is required with states and territories, there are minimal guarantees that this will involve the kind of deep consultation called for in the independent review.

My amendment will give effect to the review's recommendation and aligns the bill more closely with the principle of inclusive co-design. It would require the minister, before making rules regarding eligibility, assessment methodologies and support determinations, to publish an exposure draft and allow at least 28 days for public submissions. It would require genuine engagement during that period with people with disability, organisations representing the disability community and sector, and other relevant stakeholders. And, importantly, it would require transparency by mandating the publication of a summary of feedback received, along with the minister's response and a disability impact statement outlining how the proposed rules are expected to affect participants and prospective participants.

As responsibilities across the disability ecosystem shift across jurisdictions, it is more important than ever that thorough, meaningful consultation is undertaken to understand and to avoid unintended consequences. A related example is the New South Wales government's recent decision to potentially lock out small businesses from providing services under Thriving Kids, by limiting tenders to non-profit providers only. I've heard from many allied health and disability small businesses in Bradfield—people with deep connections to the local community and the vulnerable children they provide services to—who fear for the future of their businesses. Equally, parents are concerned about the continuity that these vital services provide for their children. Thorough consultation can help mitigate problems such as these so they do not arise, and the changes proposed by my amendment would ensure that reforms are considered systematically and holistically and that they are informed by lived experience.

These changes, if adopted and implemented, would strengthen the quality of decision-making, and they would build trust in a system that, for many people, currently feels opaque and unpredictable. They would build a social licence for a reform process that many feel has been, frankly, too rushed and exclusionary. If we're asking people to place their confidence in these significant changes to the NDIS, then we must legislate our commitment to including them in the process with openness, with respect and in a spirit of genuine partnership. I urge the government to support this amendment.

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