National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
Submission 2560
To Whom It May Concern,
I write to express formal opposition to aspects of the proposed NDIS legislative amendments and to register serious concerns regarding their implications for human rights, procedural fairness, participant autonomy, and Australia’s obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
While I recognise the need to preserve the long-term sustainability and integrity of the NDIS, such objectives must not be pursued at the expense of the fundamental rights, dignity and safety of people with disability. The proposed amendments materially shift decision-making power from participants and Parliament toward the NDIA and Ministerial discretion, raising significant concerns about transparency, accountability and the erosion of participant choice and control—principles that are central to the scheme.
The reforms present multiple interrelated risks: by narrowing definitions and introducing prescriptive lists they threaten to reduce access to supports participants currently rely upon; by expanding delegated rule-making and Ministerial instruments they weaken parliamentary oversight and democratic accountability; by replacing flexible, needs-based assessments with lists and exclusions they undermine the Section 34 principle of reasonable and necessary supports and the individualised approach central to the scheme; by introducing impairment notices and categorisation systems they risk reducing complex, fluctuating disabilities to rigid administrative labels; and by increasing administrative complexity and constraining review pathways they disproportionately impede fair appeals and access to justice for participants with intellectual, psychosocial or cognitive disabilities and those with limited advocacy support.
I am also deeply concerned about the bill’s treatment of parental responsibility and the likely consequences for parents and primary carers. The proposals appear to formalise expectations that parents assume greater administrative and case-management responsibilities, potentially without corresponding supports or respite. Where parental capacity is treated as a basis for reducing funded supports, families may face increased financial and emotional strain, and children’s needs may go unmet—particularly in single-parent households, families where parents are ageing or unwell, or where advocacy is limited. If determinations about parental responsibility are made through delegated instruments with restricted review rights, parents and participants will have diminished ability to challenge decisions, increasing the risk of inconsistent and inequitable outcomes.
As a parent and carer of a daughter who has been supported by the NDIS since its rollout, I urge the Senate to pause consideration of these amendments, undertake genuine and comprehensive consultation with participants, carers, families and frontline workers, and ensure any reform fully protects the rights, dignity and wellbeing of people with disability.
Yours faithfully