Submission
Submission made as partner and carer of someone with a disability. Inquiry into National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
Submission 1699 community participation support may be the difference between an ordinary life in the community and being effectively housebound.
I am also concerned that the Bill and related reforms appear to assume that informal supports can take up the gap. That assumption is unfair and unrealistic. Informal support is not evenly available. Some participants have a partner or family member who can assist. Others do not. Some live in rural or regional areas where transport and service options are already limited. Some have ageing carers, disabled carers, or no safe and reliable family support at all. Even where family support exists, cutting formal support shifts more unpaid labour onto partners, carers and families. It affects our health, work, finances, relationships and ability to sustain care over time. The impact of these changes therefore does not stop with the participant. It flows directly to the people who support them. I am also distressed by the public narrative around these reforms. Disabled people and NDIS participants are increasingly being portrayed as the cause of the scheme’s financial problems, or as people taking advantage of the system. Fraud and exploitation should be addressed, but participants should not be smeared as cheats or burdens. Most disabled people are simply trying to live safely, with dignity, and with some connection to the community. The NDIS was created to support independence, inclusion and participation. Reducing social and community participation supports by 50 per cent risks moving the scheme away from that purpose. It may save money in one part of the system while creating greater costs elsewhere: carer breakdown, isolation, mental health deterioration, crisis accommodation, hospitalisation, an increased pressure on families and community services.I ask the Committee to recommend that the Bill not proceed in its current form.At a minimum, I ask the Committee to recommend:
- That any reduction to social, civic and community participation supports be reconsidered especially for participants whose disability makes community access unsafe or impossible without support.
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
Submission 1699
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The Bill includes strong safeguard measures aimed at preventing discrimination towards individuals experiencing visual impairments, psychological disabilities such as those associated with Down Syndrome or Intellectual Disabilities. These protections also extend support systems for those lacking reliable informal assistance networks;
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It is recommended that governments engage genuinely within communities affected directly through these reforms— specifically involving both disabled persons themselves alongwith their caregivers and family members—to ensure decisions made do not negatively impact day-to-day living conditions nor hinder opportunities available via active participation into society independently;
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Reform efforts must concentrate on addressing provider misconducts, fraudulent activities, poor administrative practices alongside system design flaws rather than imposing additional burdens onto participants who already face significant challenges due to disability status;
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Furthermore, it’s imperative upon all parties involved including policymakers, service providers alike to uphold core values of respectability, independence decision-making capabilities while ensuring everyone feels included without exclusionary policies being implemented;