When you think of great Australian policies that have endured and enabled people to thrive, you think of the eight-hour day, you think of Medicare and now, I think it's safe to say, you also think of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, the NDIS. Now in its 11th year, the NDIS is a scheme underpinned by principles of inclusion, wellbeing and self-determination for all people with disability. Our government recognises how vital the NDIS is. It was Labor which created the scheme, and it's Labor that is doing the hard work to get the scheme back on track.
This is why I stand here today to support this bill, the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Getting the NDIS Back on Track No. 1) Bill 2024. This bill is about enhancing the NDIS and safeguarding its future so that it is here to support people with disability today, tomorrow and into perpetuity. To shape this new future for our disability community, the bill will establish an enabling architecture for future reform—reform to safeguard the original intent and integrity of the scheme. For the first time legislation will link the definition of 'NDIS supports' to rights under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Another reform relates to the provision of information gathering for eligibility reassessment, enabling the NDIA CEO to have the ability to request and receive information on whether participants meet the access criteria. This will not result in people having to re-prove their disability but will allow the CEO to determine a participant is receiving the most appropriate supports, and the process will take into account difficulties in assessing information. It should be noted that our government will work with the disability community on operating guidance to ensure the system works for people with disability.
Another change involves plan management arrangements where there is a risk for the participant, including financial risk. I want to make it clear the agency has responsibilities here too and will be required to be consistent in its operation with the legislation and the rules. I also stress that consultation with the disability sector and, importantly, with people with disability is vital in developing the detail and implementation of the reforms—because who better to ask, 'How do we fix the NDIS?' than those who it is designed to serve? They know the shortcomings of the scheme better than anyone. They experience the scheme every day, and they should always be at the centre of any consultation relevant to the future of our NDIS. That is a key message from the NDIS review panel, and it's a message that our government takes seriously. It's why we're working hand in hand with the disability community to reform the scheme. While it is a scheme that is vital, we do understand that after 10 years of coalition neglect, the scheme requires work, and we are undertaking that work right now. I would like to thank the minister for the work he has done so far, and will continue to do to enhance the system.
Many in my community have shared their views with me about the NDIS and the review, and have made submissions to it. It's a review that heard from thousands of people with disability; their families and carers; advocates and representative organisations; and providers and workers. They put their trust in the panel. They told their stories and outlined a fresh vision for a more inclusive Australia. On reading the review, I met with Professor Bruce Bonyhady, co-chair of the panel, to talk about the findings and our government's response to the recommendations. Bruce is an amazing person, and his passion is infectious. That afternoon, when I spoke to him, he reiterated a key theme of the review: listen to the call of the disability community. Ten years into the great Australian idea that is the NDIS, the moment has come to renew its promise, to learn from its first decade and to work together to deliver an NDIS that is fit for the future and part of a better Australia for all people with disability.
After a decade of inaction, our government is determined to listen to these voices and to shape that better future which Bruce spoke about. I believe this bill will be a catalyst for that future. It's a bill that fulfils our government's promise for urgent reform—reform that our disability community can no longer wait for. With that urgency, I know many people with disability, their families, carers and support workers have questions about how the bill will work. They want to know how the reforms will close the page on heartbreaking stories that punctuate the history of the NDIS. I've encouraged many of these people to attend recent online information sessions. The stories I've heard have thoroughly reinforced the need for this reform. The committee heard a woman, Halo, in her mid-40s. Halo lives in a rural location, where waiting periods for services can take months or years. She said to me, 'The idea of going without specialist care for so long fills me with dread.' It's hard to imagine the pain and isolation she must feel, and that's why we're undertaking this reform. Living in a remote community is already hard enough, without feeling left behind by the scheme that's meant to be there to support you. Once again, after 10 years of neglect, we are undertaking significant reform.
This bill is vital. It is also where the findings of the NDIS review and the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability come into play, providing significant recommendations that are now under active consideration. These reforms will take thoughtful implementation, and I want to thank the minister once again for undertaking this significant process to enhance the NDIS. There needs to be a thoughtful, measured approach, with reforms undertaken step by step in line with our disability community, including providers and of course participants themselves—we do want them to play an important role in codesign. The budget has provided funding for these reforms: in better planning; in revising the pricing scheme; in improving the participant experience; in returning choice and control to the participant; and in undertaking ways to reduce and, hopefully, abolish the amount of fraud that's occurring in the system—that's important if we're going to sustain the system.
In closing, it's time for the states and territories to play their role. It's time, after 10 years of coalition inaction, that we undertake this important reform so that the NDIS better serves and supports the disability community. And it's time to write a new chapter, one that delivers positive change for all people with disability.
