Australia’s Catholic bishops are among those urging the Albanese Government to review its proposed changes to the National Disability Insurance Scheme to ensure the most vulnerable are not left behind. Source: ACBC Media Blog.
Chair of the Bishops Commission for Social Justice, Mission and Service, Bishop Timothy Harris, said the NDIS Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill has been developed with inadequate consultation with the disability community.
“Those who are directly affected have not been adequately consulted on the most consequential features of this bill,” Bishop Harris said.
“A two-week consultation period was provided for the large-scale reform the bill is implementing, which is entirely inadequate.”
A Senate inquiry received thousands of submissions, mostly from advocacy and disability groups.
The bill aims to move more than 200,000 people off the scheme towards state-funded programs that are yet to be set up.
It would provide the NDIS Minister with increased power to reduce funding for categories of support – in particular, social and community participation programs.
The Australian Human Rights Commission and the NDIS Reform Advisory Committee have urged the government to slow down and rethink the bill.
“We urge the government to uphold the dignity of the human person,” Bishop Harris said.
“The most vulnerable in our community cannot be left behind or reduced to a cost measure.
“The Catholic Church’s teaching on subsidiarity and participation emphasises that people with disability have the right to participate in decisions that affect their lives.
“A significant reduction in social and community participation supports has the potential to reduce inclusion and further marginalise people with disability.”
The bill also includes increased use of computer programs and provides the minister with the power to expand the use of this in the future.
Pope Leo XIV warned in the recent encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, that “it is necessary to establish adequate regulatory tools capable of upholding justice and curbing the distorting effects of technological power”.
“The increased unregulated use of automated decision-making risks an imbalance of power and autonomy for people with disability,” Bishop Harris said.
The commission recommends further review and consultation with those the bill directly affects.
FULL STORY
National Disability Insurance Scheme bill requires further work (ACBC Media Blog)
