Page 3832 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 24 August 2011
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(e) the interest of the disability sector in establishing a National Disability Insurance Scheme and a National Injury Insurance Scheme; and
(2) calls on the ACT Government to:
(a) actively participate in all relevant national discussions on the National Disability Insurance Scheme and a National Injury Insurance Scheme;
(b) continue to progress implementation of Future Directions: Towards Challenge 2014 and other relevant disability initiatives, including the true portability and equity in funding for disabled students in both government and non-government schools as the Chief Minister has proposed and improve upon these initiatives until final implementation of the National Disability Insurance Scheme; and
(c) keep the Assembly informed of progress with the implementation of a National Disability Insurance Scheme and a National Injury Insurance Scheme.”.
MS BRESNAN (Brindabella) (6.38): I will speak to Mr Hargreaves’s motion and Mr Doszpot’s amendment. The Greens welcome the motion moved by Mr Hargreaves today, as we very much support the development of a national disability insurance scheme and a national injury insurance scheme. People with disabilities should not have to live with poor levels of equity and self-determination and should have greater control of the funding they need for the services they require.
There are currently issues with equity in funding amongst users of disability services. There are cases where two people with the same level of disabilities will not always get the same level of help. Negotiating a complicated system of disability services creates major hurdles and difficulties for people with a disability in claiming funding. Essentially, people need to know how the system works in order to be able to get a decent result. In some cases, individuals and families give up and only engage in the system when a crisis or difficulty occurs. They find the application process more stressful sometimes than the idea of going without help. For many, the stress and frustration just is not worth it.
Many people with disabilities have said that if they could access a particular service at certain times, such as transport and daily assistance, they would be able to engage in activities such as employment or education, which make them an active member of the community. We have all heard stories where young people cannot get the help they need in the morning to have a shower, for example, so they are embarrassed to go to work. Others have said that they have had to stop education because they could not access reliable—
Mr Doszpot interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Ms Bresnan has the floor.
MS BRESNAN: Just let me finish my point, Mr Doszpot. They have had to stop education because they could not access reliable transport. Then there are the cases,
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