Page 3807 - Week 14 - Thursday, 10 December 1992
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Disability Services
MS SZUTY: My question is to the Minister for Housing and Community Services, Mr Connolly. I gave the Minister notice that I would be asking this question today. The Minister's department has recently undertaken a public consultation process on a draft strategic plan for disability services. Can the Minister inform the Assembly of the results of the public consultation process and what steps remain to be taken in developing the final strategic plan?
MR CONNOLLY: I thank Ms Szuty for her question and her interest in this matter. The Government has gone through a process of consultation on a strategic plan for disability services as a consequence of the Commonwealth-State disability agreement and the move to clarify that the States and Territories have responsibility for the accommodation side and the Commonwealth has responsibility for vocational aspects.
The draft strategic plan for disability services was circulated for community consultation in October. Public meetings were held throughout October and November and 40 written responses have been received from consumers, parents, service providers, peak disability organisations and the unions responsible for covering service providers. A steering committee has compiled and assessed verbal and written responses received in the consultation process and pooled information on the availability of current services, both specialised and generic, for people with disability services in the ACT, identifying gaps in the service and in the areas of greatest need. The steering committee will now identify priorities for service development in the immediate future.
Recommendations on priority areas will be made to me by the end of this year and a notional allocation of funds available through that Commonwealth-State disability services agreement will be determined. We will then seek expressions of interest from non-government organisations wishing to apply for priority funding to meet some of these needs through, we hope, January-February of next year, and I would hope and confidently anticipate that successful groups will receive their first funding in April-May of next year.
Health Complaints Unit
MR STEVENSON: My question is to the Chief Minister, Rosemary Follett, and concerns the Health Complaints Unit. What is the role of the Health Complaints Unit? How was it established? Whom is it responsible to? In acknowledging the principle that justice should not only be done but be seen to be done, might the unit be seen to be more independent if it were established outside the Health Department, perhaps within the Attorney-General's Department?
MS FOLLETT: I will refer the question to the Minister responsible, Madam Speaker, the Minister for Health.
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