Speech: 'Moving forward for Australians with disability and their carers', MS Australia, Blackburn, Victoria
Julia Gillard
posted Thursday, 29 July 2010
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Acknowledgements
- Bill Younger, CEO, MS Australia
- Jenny Macklin, Minister for Families and Community Services, Housing and Indigenous Affairs
- Bill Shorten, Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Children’s Services
- Mike Symon, Member for Deakin
Thank you to Bill Younger and MS Australia for the opportunity of joining you today.
And congratulations for the tremendous work you have done for more than 50 years for Australians suffering from MS, and for their families.
Today I want to discuss how Australia moves forward to build a better future for Australians with a disability, and for those Australians who are their carers.
Around 1.5 million Australians have a high level of disability and about 760,000 have a disability that is severe or profound.
That’s equivalent to the population of Geelong, Townsville, Darwin, Ballarat, Mackay, Mandurah and Bathurst combined.
And of those 760,000 individuals, around 180,000 are children under the age of 15.
I want them to have better services and better opportunities and that’s what I am here to discuss today.
But before I do that, let me acknowledge the Minister for Families and Community Services, Jenny Macklin.
Jenny has won immense respect across the community for her deep commitment to better social policy for Australians, and for the leadership and sensitivity she brings to every part of her portfolio.
I also want to acknowledge today my Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Children’s Services, Bill Shorten.
Bill is a powerful advocate for people with disability.
He has driven debate on disability services over the past three years rigorously, vigorously and with deep passion.
And his work has helped amplify the voice of many others who have dedicated their careers to advancing the cause of people with disability.
Friends, people with disability are our parents, our children, our neighbours, our work colleagues and our friends.
Some have battled with disability since childhood.
Some have experienced a traumatic accident.
Some have been struck with a serious illness like Multiple Sclerosis, or by a stroke.
Australians can acquire disability on any day – rich and poor alike – some for a short time and some permanently.
Any young person can jump into a swimming pool or pack down into a scrum and emerge a quadriplegic.
And any mother can give birth to child with Down syndrome or cerebral palsy.
Disability can affect any of us, and therefore it affects all of us.
Friends, one of the messages that I and my colleagues hear loud and clear as we move throughout the community is that Australia must do more to help people with disability, and those who care for them.
And my government is determined to do more.
I want Australia to move forward to being a nation that provides every opportunity for all Australians to achieve their potential – to flourish and lead full lives.
I want Australia to be a nation where all of our people have the opportunity of a good education.
The opportunity to enjoy a secure job.
Access to appropriate health services and accommodation.
And the opportunity to participate in social and community activities, and be a valued and respected member of society.
Friends, to be such a nation, we must do more for Australians with disability, who are some of the most disadvantaged people in our nation today.
We must make sure these Australians can share fully in the ‘fair go’ spirit that defines our nation.
We need to remove barriers and expand opportunities so that more people with disability can participate fully in Australia’s economic and social life.
And so that unpaid carers are not always stretched to breaking point by a lack of support…and so fewer family members are forced out of the workforce to make up for gaps in our system of care.
We need to bring the great Australian qualities of compassion and practicality to the great challenge of improving the lives of Australians with disability.
Friends, I believe we have made important progress since Labor was elected in 2007, addressing twelve years of neglect by the previous government, putting disability on the national agenda and beginning the hard work of reform.
Our first term achievements have set the foundation for long-term, sustainable reform.
We have doubled Commonwealth funding to more than six billion dollars over five years under a new National Disability Agreement with an agreement to deliver more than 24,000 additional care places.
We have also expanded after school care for teenagers with disability – making it easier for parents and carers to join or return to the workforce, and participate in the wider community.
We are providing more support to disability pensioners and carers struggling with the cost of living.
Our reforms have given record pension increases to more than 870,000 disability pensioners and carers and a new ongoing Carer Supplement for 500,000 carers.
We are supporting carers by placing their needs at the centre of government policy through new National Carer Recognition Legislation and committing to a National Carer Strategy.
And we have made flexible leave arrangements for carers a central part of our Fair Work Act, because we believe that Australians shouldn’t always have to choose between their loved one or their job.
In my previous portfolio the Government introduced a new program to assist children with autism spectrum disorder.
Implementing specialist early intervention and education services that have assisted 8,500 children since 2008 and I know first-hand the relief that this has brought to mums and dads all over Australia.
We are making community facilities more accessible by delivering Disability Standards Access to Premises which, for the first time, set the minimum access requirements for public buildings.
Just two weeks ago we also secured the agreement of the housing industry to a target for all new homes to meet universal design standards by 2020.
And an achievement I’m especially proud of: we’re eliminating waiting lists for disability employment services with 1.7 billion dollars in just over two years to uncap employment services for people with disability.
In the last financial year, we assisted around 75,000 more people with disability than when we came to office.
I will continue to work harder to help people with disability get the training, assistance and opportunity for work.
Because I understand the dignity and sense of purpose that comes from work…and no Australian who is able should be excluded from the opportunity to participate in work.
We know that many people with disability want to work and can work, just as better disability services will allow more carers to choose to return to the workforce.
In other words, better support for those with disability can unlock a whole new stream of productivity and workforce participation.
Australia is also supporting disability rights at an international level.
We were among the first developed nations to sign the UN convention on the Rights of People with Disability.
We have also set an example to other nations by ratifying the Optional Protocol, which provides people with disability a last-resort process to appeal their rights when their domestic remedies have been exhausted.
Friends, I believe we have done more in three years than our opponents did in twelve.
But there is more to be done.
And we must do more.
The number of Australians living with a high level of disability is projected to rise to almost 2.3 million by 2030.
Accordingly, we must re-think how we can do better in the support we give to people with disability.
We need greater incentives for early intervention, and better drivers of participation in work and the community.
We need to consider the whole of a person’s life and adapt to their unique needs, no matter how they acquired their disability.
We know this is what people with disability want…and it is in the nation’s long-term interest.
That’s why our government has asked the Productivity Commission to undertake a landmark inquiry into the feasibility of a national care and support scheme for people with disability.
If feasible, a national disability insurance scheme would be a fundamental change to the way disability services are funded, delivered and administered in Australia.
We appreciate the strong interest in the inquiry from people with disability, their families and carers and the wider community.
Undoubtedly this issue requires detailed consideration, and would require substantial resources, which is why we have tasked the Productivity Commission with investigating possible ways forward.
We look forward to the outcome of the work they are now undertaking on a national disability scheme and we will carefully consider it.
The Status quo isn't good enough. We must keep moving forward. And in the meantime, my Government will keep moving forward.
There is much more to be done in our journey of inclusion and reform, and today I can announce another step forward: a National Disability Strategy.
The first ever National Disability Strategy provides a long term
road map to improve outcomes for people with disability and their families.
We have developed it in cooperation with State and Territory governments through the Council of Australian Governments.
It covers services provided at every level of government, and incorporates disability services and other support provided to Australians with disability.
The National Disability Strategy will help us create better services, programs and community infrastructure so that people with disability have the same opportunities as other Australians – to a quality education, to health care, to get a job and to access buildings, transport and media.
It covers the practical things that matter every day, like helping local councils to improve access so that people with disability can go to the local pool or visit the library.
And fast-tracking new audio description and captioning technology into our cinemas so people with visual or hearing impairments can enjoy a night out at the movies.
It’s also about the larger policy settings that will, over time, strengthen consideration for those with disability across the wide gamut of government policy development.
That is why, for the first time, we are ensuring that national agreements across all areas – health, education, housing – include clear targets and strategies for people with disability.
And I’m also delighted that the National Disability Strategy means support and mentoring to help people with disability become leaders in business, the community and government.
A re-elected Gillard Labor Government will take the draft National Disability Strategy to COAG early in the next term.
Friends, expanding opportunity for people with disability starts with providing intervention and support earlier so that children with disability get a better start in life.
I’m proud to announce today that a re-elected Gillard Labor Government will provide new access to early intervention services to help give more children with disability a better start in life.
Research shows that intensive early intervention in the pre-school years can be highly effective for children with autism spectrum disorders, deaf-blindness, hearing loss, blindness, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome and Fragile X syndrome.
But many families simply cannot afford to access suitable therapies and treatments.
So today I announce the Better Start for Children with Disabilities program.
This program will help children under the age of six with a diagnosis of a listed disability.
We will provide up to 12,000 dollars for early intervention services for each child.
A maximum of 6,000 dollars can be spent in each financial year, and families will have up to their child’s seventh birthday to use the funding.
We will also make available a range of new diagnosis and treatment services for older children with those conditions – funded by Medicare.
We will implement a Medicare rebate for the development of a treatment and management plan for each diagnosed child under the age of 13.
Medicare rebates will be available for up to four allied health diagnostic services and for up to twenty allied health treatment services per child in total with relevant allied health professionals.
High quality early intervention services are critical to assist children with a developmental disability prepare for school and reach their potential and we want that for every Australian child – every child.
Friends, we all know that most families want to care for their loved ones with disability at home, but sometimes that is just not possible.
Carers get worn out by years of effort.
They get old and, of course, all eventually will pass on.
That’s why supported accommodation and respite plays a key role in our system, offering a real opportunity for people with disability to participate in social, economic and community life from a secure domestic base, and providing security and confidence for parents of adults with disability who are entering into older age and asking themselves that heartbreaking question: what will happen when I am gone?
That’s why we’ve funded over 300 supported accommodation places targeting those being looked after by older carers.
But we must do more, and that is why today I also announce an additional investment providing up to 150 additional places in Supported Accommodation.
This investment is aimed at encouraging community organisations to develop innovative models for delivering supported accommodation and respite for people with disability.
For the first time, community based organisations will be able to submit applications for capital funding, leveraging local support and building upon existing investments.
This will particularly benefit people who are currently on waiting lists and those with older parent carers.
We are increasing Supported Accommodation places because we want people with disability to be able to live independently in a safe and supported environment, giving families and carers peace of mind, knowing that their loved one will be cared for in an appropriate setting when they are no longer able to care for them.
Friends, today is July 29 and that means we are just 23 days out from a federal election.
So with your forbearance, I want to touch on some of the things that are at stake when we go to the polls in four Saturday’s time.
I’ve characterised this election as a choice between going back and moving forwards.
Between gazing into the rear vision mirror or looking forward to a brighter and more confident future.
The Coalition has pledged to halt the National Broadband Network that will help bring the world to those living with disability and their carers.
They want to shut down our trades training centres that will help so many young people gain skills for the future, including many young people with disability.
They want to dump our after hours helpline that will help you find a GP late at night when something goes wrong.
They want to impose a new tax on business that will push up the cost of milk, petrol and other everyday items for disability pensioners and their carers.
And they want to ditch the Super GP Clinics that will provide the kind of joined up services that are so important to families who need to see doctors and specialists more often.
Friends, I believe Australians want a government that will deliver better essential services – not one that cuts them back.
A government committed to funding disability services – as we have, with the highest level of indexation ever – more than six per cent over the life of the agreement – compared to 1.8 per cent under the previous government’s disability agreement with the states in real terms, a cut in funding…
Under my government, the Commonwealth’s disability funding will reach 1.2 billion dollar by 2012, compared to 600 million dollars in the previous government’s last year in office.
We delivered a new, annual Carers Supplement for more than 500,000 carers and secured it in legislation – the previous government just offered one-off bonuses for carers with no certainty.
We delivered a pension increase now worth an extra 100 dollars a fortnight for single disability pensioners, in line with age pensioners – the previous government ignored pensioners on Disability Support.
My friends, I believe it truly is a choice between going back or moving forwards for those with disability and their carers and for all Australians.
Friends, I believe ours is the greatest country in which to live.
I look to our future with optimism and ambition and with determination to uplift and include all of our people... all of our people.
In these past three years we have worked to rebuild the social safety net and open the doors of opportunity and inclusion.
But there’s a long way still to go and much more yet to do.
So let’s continue the journey.
Let’s get the job done.
Let’s move forward together.
Tags: 2010, Community, Disabilities, Election, Gillard, Julia, Minister, Prime