National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 2446
Senate Standing Committees on Community Affairs
PO Box 6100
Parliament House
Canberra
Australian Capital Territory 2600
31 May 2026
Dear Members of the Committee,
A Submission on the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the
NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
Thank you for the opportunity to provide a submission regarding the National Disability
Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 (“the
bill”).
My name is Dinesh Palipana. I am a doctor and lawyer. I work as a doctor in an public
emergency department. I have the privilege of working in research and teaching at two
universities, one in spinal cord injury research. I was grateful to be a senior advisor for the
Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability
(“the Disability Royal Commission”).
I write in my personal capacity as a person with a spinal cord injury, which I sustained at the
age of twenty-five. The injury has affected the function of the fingers, half of the arms, and
everything below the chest. Others in the community of people with disability will
undoubtedly speak to their concerns about this bill. With that in mind, I hope to submit some
select thoughts.
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National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 2446
Background
As a migrant from Sri Lanka arriving in Australia at the age of ten, I can attest to the National
Disability Insurance Scheme (“the NDIS”) being a beacon for our world. It is said that the
true measure of any society is in how it treats its most vulnerable members, a quote often
attributed to Mahatma Gandhi. The NDIS is a testament to the great heart of Australia, a
contrast to many other places on earth where my counterparts languish, passing away with a
life expectancy a fraction of mine due to a lack of support.
While carrying out its social objective, however, the NDIS makes a positive economic
impact. The report False Economy1 by Per Capita noted that, “The economic impact of the
scheme is likely very large, even compared to other types of government spending. A
conservative estimate of the multiplier effect of the NDIS would be in the range of 2.25.” Not
only does the NDIS stir the economy and create jobs; but it enables participants to work, pay
taxes, and participate in the community.
The entwined social and economic impact of the NDIS has created a linchpin of Australia
which transcends our political spectrum.
Mandatory registration
At the heart of the NDIS is choice and control. Mandatory registration challenges that notion.
This is because disability care can be deeply personal, involving activities like bowel and
bladder care; showering and dressing; and a presence in someone’s home. The presence of
people providing disability support, in some instances, can be more than a spouse or parent.
Therefore, a participant’s comfort with the person providing care is paramount.
I have experienced care from both controversial providers like FSG Australia and direct
support from a dedicated, loving team. For me, the people have mattered more than
registration. This begs the question, does mandatory registration equate to better care for
people?
In experience both as a doctor and member of the community, I have repeatedly seen
registered providers deliver poor care, at times leading to the death of participants. I have
- Michael D’Rosario and Matt Lloyd-Cape, False Economy: The Economic Benefits of the National Disability Insurance Scheme and the Consequences of Government Cost-Cutting (Report, Per Capita for National Disability Services, November 2021).
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National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 2446
seen unregistered providers deliver care which enables someone to live an exceptional life,
including participation in work, family, and the community.
Many unregistered providers make fulfilling careers in disability care; become small business
owners; and even support themselves while being students or athletes. These providers enjoy
the choice and control in their own work, while enabling choice and control for their
participants. This type of model is not unique to us. In the United Kingdom, it is estimated
that about 131,000 jobs are created by participants directly employing people for similar
work in a similar scheme. 2
There is merit to the idea of a “graduated risk-proportionate regulatory model”. However, we
must ensure maximum autonomy for participants who can and want that autonomy, while
protecting those who are the most vulnerable. These decisions must be made in collaboration
with families, whose informal care contribution was valued at $77.9 billion in 2020 3,
eclipsing the cost of the NDIS.
All appropriate treatment for an impairment
As of 2026, there is no cure for spinal cord injuries like mine. Similarly, there are no cures for
many other conditions that NDIS participants have. If we are setting a bar for participation in
the scheme to be having exhausted all appropriate treatment for an impairment, to reduce the
future cost of the scheme, it is an imperative to invest in research to improve function in these
conditions.
Not only is this beneficial to the future of the NDIS, but it is an economic necessity for
Australia. In a Group of Eight report, it was noted that “R&D expenditure, along with its
widespread adoption, is an integral factor contributing to Australia’s capacity for innovation
and productivity, which are the longterm sources of growth and prosperity.”4 The report
expands by saying that, “Australia’s R&D intensity has been in decline for over a decade, at
a time when productivity growth has been patchy and advanced economies have been
investing heavily in R&D to boost their long-term prospects. The result is a growing gap
between our R&D performance and that of advanced OECD economies.”
-
Skills for Care, Individual Employers and Personal Assistants Survey 2026 (Report, Skills for Care, 2026).
-
Deloitte Access Economics, The Value of Informal Care in 2020 (Report prepared for Carers Australia, May 2020).
-
Group of Eight, Australia’s Research and Development (R&D) Intensity: A Decadal Roadmap to 3% of GDP (Report to the Australian Government, July 2024).
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National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 2446
The NDIS can become a vehicle that contributes to Australia’s economic prosperity by
investing more in research that, in time, raises the very bar that it sets, by generating more ‘all
appropriate treatment’.
Australian manufacturing for assistive equipment
There is a high dependency on imported equipment for assistive technology, including
wheelchairs. The bill speaks to the cost of equipment, but it is useful to incentivise purchases
from Australian manufacturers.
This approach not only optimises the economic impact of the NDIS, contributing to the
revival of our manufacturing sector; but allows participants to access quicker support and
repairs, which at times can take weeks to months with foreign manufacturers.
Ministerial powers
My country of birth, Sri Lanka, has a distant history of arbitrary detention, extrajudicial
killings, and abuses of power. When I was a child, we lived in fear of the government, a fear
that is still experienced by many in this world - but not in Australia. And so, discussions of an
expansion of ministerial power is a reminder of the political maxim, “eternal vigilance is the
price of liberty”.
Steps to increase the concentration of power risks the erosion of individual rights and
institutional oversight. For the community of people with disability, to be at the whim of a
concentrated power is a risk. It is also contrary to the democratic values of Australia.
The way forward
There is no doubt that the NDIS requires a sustainable future. The bill, however, impacts an
important socioeconomic mechanism in our country. Therefore, it should not be rushed.
The future should be shaped by taking into account the views of the scheme’s stakeholders,
providing transparency in the detail of proposed changes, and shaping it carefully. The bill
should not be passed at this time, until those steps are taken.
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National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 2446
I thank you for your work in creating this beautiful nation for us all to live in. If I can be of
service in this important issue, I met your disposal.
Yours faithfully,
Asst. Prof. Dinesh Palipana OAM, LLB, GradDipLP, CertEM, GAICD, MD, FACLM
Email:
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