Page 1807 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 7 June 2006
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with them on what will be a very difficult path in their own lives. To have their friends around them in the long term would, of course, be a way of making that path somewhat easier to travel. I see the minister nodding. I am sure she is going to get up and deliver lots of great news, and I look forward to that great news. It is a problem that is not going to go away, and indeed it is a problem that may get worse in time.
I have a friend who was a fireman. He was looking after his wife—they were in their 30s—as she had developed a debilitating disease. He spent five years at home looking after her until it became impossible for him, not because he did not want to but because he did not have the knowledge or the physical resources to be able to do it. With great regret, in her 30s, his wife of some 15 years went into a nursing home, and that is where she will spend the rest of her life.
A nursing home at approximately 35 is not something that anybody should have to suffer or endure. Again, as a society, we need to ask ourselves: can we make it better? If we have enough underage people who should not be in nursing homes in this city—and hopefully the minister will enlighten us as to the exact number—then hopefully they can be brought together in a single facility that can be modified or made more appropriate to their needs.
I commend the motion to the house. The opposition will support the motion. We have some doubt about recognising the commitment of the Stanhope Labor government to maintaining services for these people. I think “maintaining” is a word that says we are happy with what is going on currently. Clearly the federal government do not believe that what is happening currently is appropriate. They have put their money where their mouth is with $122 million.
The ACT government has allocated almost $1 million over the next four years. That is to be commended but, beyond that four years, indeed beyond this year—because I note there is only $110,000 in the first year, doubling to $200,000 and almost $400,000 in the two outyears—it is the physical infrastructure, which is costly. When these people reach a point when they cannot stay at home with their loved ones, when they cannot be cared for appropriately, they must have somewhere appropriate to go. I look forward to what the minister will have to say. With that, we will support the motion.
MS GALLAGHER (Molonglo—Minister for Health, Minister for Disability and Community Services, Minister for Women and Acting Minister for Housing) (11.01): I thank Ms MacDonald for bringing this motion to the Assembly today. At any one time, approximately 3½ per cent of the ACT population will require ongoing support because of their disability. When the Stanhope government took office, there was clear evidence of long-term neglect of the disability service system. Since then the government have undertaken significant systemic reform in the disability area and we have committed substantial resources to improve the level of services and support available to people with a disability.
Between 2002 and 2006 this government has provided an additional $12 million to address support needs in the disability sector for people with disabilities and the families that care for them. Over the last three years, Disability ACT has implemented strategies to minimise the effects of disability and maximise opportunities for individuals, with a focus on improving the quality of life for all people with a disability in each of the
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