Terry Young (Longman, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

To build a better world, a better Australia, we need to break down the barriers, cut the red tape and create connected and cohesive communities for people of all abilities. We must work to improve the lives of all Australians living with a disability, because they have so many talents, passions, goals, ambitions and dreams to share with the world. We need to celebrate their talents, help them to achieve their dreams, meet their needs and encourage them to let their voices to be heard in their community, because we want to hear from them. To do this we need to help people with disability to learn, build and develop the skills they need to be independent and to go about their daily lives with ease, retain and find employment, help them get access to the vital services they need, and empower them to engage and make a difference within their community so that they can lead happy, healthy, active and fulfilling lives. Improving the lives of all Australians living with disability has never been more critical.

For many Australians with disability and those who care for them, daily life is not always easy. Meeting the needs of someone with a disability can put families under a great deal of emotional and financial stress. This is why we need to ensure the National Disability Insurance Scheme, or NDIS, continues to give Australians with disability the resources and services they need to greatly enhance and improve their overall quality of life. I understand this, as one of my employees is hearing impaired. She's completely deaf in one ear and can hear only a little bit out of her left ear and wears a hearing aid for that ear. This does not impact her ability to do her job, pursue her passions or get involved in her local community. In fact, she is one of my finest workers.

Across Australia there are now over 300,000 participants supported by the NDIS to help them reach their goals. As of 30 June 2019 the Longman electorate had 1,477 NDIS participants. We also have 281 providers in the electorate, who work tirelessly every day to ensure that the needs and goals of their clients are met. Last Tuesday we were privileged to have the Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, and Minister for the NDIS, Stuart Robert, visit the Morayfield health hub to chat with a group of local NDIS clients during an NDIS roundtable meeting. We were able to gain valuable insight into the scheme through the eyes of the NDIS participants. We also heard about some of the wonderful talents the clients have, including a gentleman and NDIS participant who could take the most amazing photographs, and he had in fact received some awards.

Finding out the needs of individuals across the Longman electorate and meeting those in need is one of the many reasons why I got into politics, so I was proud to be able to hear the stories and listen to the needs of the NDIS clients at this meeting firsthand. That's what we need to do as a government. We need to meet and support the needs of all Australians. We need to keep fighting for better futures and work to transform the lives of all Australians living with disability so they can dream big, live a fulfilling life and pursue their passions.