Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As we draw towards the end of this parliamentary session I reflect on the achievements of this parliament and the government to date. In doing that the thing that comes to mind is the landmark commitment of this government to the National Disability Insurance Scheme, the NDIS. As I worked for a very large part of my life in the area of disability, I know how important this is to people who have a disability. I was so impressed that we have made this commitment that I decided to hold within my electorate some NDIS forums. I invited people along to tell me what the problems were at the moment. The problems were very predictable and were the kinds of problems identified in the Productivity Commission's report.

People identified a lack of services, a lack of choice, a lack of funding, skills shortages, information and training not being available for people at home, respite not being available, a lack of long-term care options, that people felt as though they were not being heard, that personal needs were not taken into account with the one size fits all, the assessment process to date has not been effective, services and programs are too generic and the current disability process is inflexible. The list goes on and on. People with disabilities cannot get information and when they do get that information it is quite often difficult to put it into practical use.

We also engaged with people and talked about what the National Disability Insurance Scheme would mean to them. People were saying it would make a difference and change their lives. They would like it to happen a little quicker. I gave them a commitment that I would work for them to see that they benefited from it. On Saturday next week I will be at the Lake Haven Shopping Centre with members of the NDIS group in that area. We will be seeking support and signatures from people to ensure that their voice is heard and that people on the Central Coast who are committed to the NDIS can maximise the amount of interest and knowledge about the NDIS in that area. One issue that was raised is that people did not quite understand the NDIS. I encourage all members of this parliament to communicate with their community and raise this important issue.