“I would perish”: The human cost of the PM’s NDIS cuts
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
I'm tired. I'm in pain. I'm at breaking point. But I refuse to sit here and stay quiet while this government attempts to strip us of our basic rights and dignity. When I sat before this committee in June.
Over six days of public hearings, Australians with a disability told Parliament what losing NDIS support would mean for their independence, their families, and their everyday.
Lives. I can't leave the house, nor can I actually access the ability to have a shower.
What personal stories did witnesses share about the impact of losing NDIS support?
And that is a vital way that I need to exist and live my life as a disabled person. I would perish. I would cease to exist. And many per si participants are in the same position. And that extension towards
Despite more than 4,000 submissions and calls for reforms to be paused, the government's overhaul of the scheme passed the Senate yesterday, with support from the coalition. By tightening access and reducing some supports, the changes are forecast to save almost $38 billion over the next four years. But advocates warn the cuts will leave people worse off and shift the costs onto families, hospitals, and the states. I'm Ruby Jones and you're listening to seven AM. Today, CEO of Women with Disabilities Australia, Sophie Cussworth, on what these reforms mean for people who rely on the NDIS and if the scheme can be made sustainable without leaving people behind. It's Wednesday, August nineteenth. Sophie, after months of argument over these changes to the NDAS, the Senate actually began debating the bill on Monday.
Tell me what happened in that debate.
So in the Senate on Monday, we saw um that each Greens senator moved a motion that the Senate reject the bill and call for the government to withdraw it.
People can and will die if this bill goes through. This bill needs to be chucked in the bin.
A number of senators in particular noted something of great interest to us at Women with Disabilities Australia, which is the gendered impacts of the bill.
Women already carry a disproportionate care burden in this country. They're filling the gaps in aged care and now they're going to be filling the gaps in NDIS. That is not cost free. We saw a number
of independent senators move to reject the bill.
I don't think that that this can be done. Safely. Um we heard that this will isolate people. Uh people are already more isolated than the general population.
We saw Senator Rustin on behalf of the Coalition
noting some concerns. The Coalition has been working across the Parliament with the Government, the Australian Greens and specifically Senator Steelejohn, and members of the crossbench to improve this bill.
And Senator Steelejohn from the Greens moving substantive amendments to the Act.
We do not fit into tiny little boxes. And even though that annoys government politicians and bureaucrats, that is the reality.
So the government won the coalition's support on this bill, but only on the condition that it scraps its so-called widow tax on investment properties in return. So it seems like at this point the bill is being used as a bargaining tool.
Which is something that the disability community is quite familiar with. We know like many other marginalized communities, um, our lives are often used as bargaining tools. Um we saw some some pretty awful media commentary about the NDIS, you know, in the lead up to these proposed changes. I think we are often scapegoated, often used as as a bargaining tool. And what we need to keep at the centre of this is that we're talking about people's real lives. This is one in five Australians is a person with disability. Um, you know, the majority of people with disability are not on the NDIS. Only around 12% of people with disability are NDIS participants, but this is something that affects all of us. We are part of every community.
Um, it is incredibly devastating to see our community talked about um in in these ways and and used. for political debate.
Mm-hmm. So when you look at this legislation now in its current form, what does it actually change for people with a disability?
So broadly, it makes changes to who can access the scheme and what kind of supports are available under the NDIS.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:02–0:29
2
What personal stories did witnesses share about the impact of losing NDIS support?
0:29–5:22
3
How did the Senate debate unfold and what motions were proposed against the NDIS reform bill?
5:22–8:39
4
Why are women, girls, and gender‑diverse people disproportionately affected by the proposed cuts?
8:39–10:53
5
What challenges did advocates face when preparing submissions during the limited inquiry period?
10:53–14:21
6
How do the new eligibility and support changes alter everyday life for NDIS participants?
14:21–16:24
Speakers
1 identifiedMore from 7am
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