With the Federal election just around the corner, now is a critical time to make sure the voices of people with disability are front and centre.

Every Australian Counts recently ran a community survey to find out what matters most when it comes to the NDIS – and what people with disability want political leaders to commit to. You can read the full survey results here.

We shared these top five priorities with the major political parties and asked them how they would respond:

• Protecting choice and control over support providers, including unregistered providers.
• Reforming the NDIS support lists to restore flexibility and individualisation.
• Ensuring Support Needs Assessments are fair, trauma-informed, and co-designed.
• Allowing more time for meaningful and authentic co-design with people with disability.
• Protecting the right not to be forced into group homes or shared supports against participants’ will.

We shared the top five priorities raised by the community with the major political parties and asked them to respond. We have now received responses from both the Australian Greens and the Coalition. At the time of publication, the Australian Labor Party has not yet provided a response.

The Greens’ Response

The Greens strongly opposed the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Getting the NDIS Back on Track No. 1) Bill 2024, warning that it restricts choice and control for participants under the guise of preventing fraud and reducing spending. They raised concerns that tens of thousands of people with disability have already lost access to the scheme since the Bill’s passage.

Their key commitments include:

• Restoring NDIS Funding: Reversing over $80 billion of Labor’s budget cuts to remove cost pressures and restore access to essential supports.

• Removing the Age Cap: Ending age discrimination so that people over 65 can access the NDIS.

• Strengthening Safeguards: Investing $400 million more into the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission to improve investigations and protections.

• Supporting People with Psychosocial Disability: Providing $1.6 billion in payments to people who have lost access until supports are fully in place or their eligibility is restored.

In Response to the Five Priorities:

Choice and Control Over Providers

Our survey found that 58 percent of respondents ranked protecting choice over providers as their top concern. Many people told us that trusted, skilled supports often come from unregistered providers, and mandatory registration would leave them without options.

Greens: Strongly oppose mandatory provider registration, particularly because it would leave many people in rural and remote areas without access to trusted supports. They reaffirm that choice and control must remain central to the NDIS, including the ability to choose unregistered providers.

Coalition: Supports a mandatory provider registration system that is proportionate to the type of service delivered. The Coalition aims to balance safety and quality with the need to avoid unnecessary red tape for smaller providers.

Reform of the NDIS Support Lists

Many people in our survey called for an end to bureaucratic tick-box lists that fail to reflect individual circumstances.

Greens: Advocate against replacing ‘reasonable and necessary’ with rigid support lists. They argue that these lists limit flexibility and deny participants the personalised supports that best meet their needs.

Coalition: Did not address the support lists specifically. However, they committed to ongoing consultation with people with disability and careful consideration of the NDIS Review recommendations. They reinforced their belief in a demand-driven scheme that is sustainable for future generations.

Fair, Trauma-Informed Support Needs Assessments

Our community survey showed that 49 percent of respondents were concerned these assessments could retraumatise people, override trusted allied health advice, and result in unfair funding cuts.

Greens: Raised concerns that Support Needs Assessments do not take into account whole-of-person needs, lack transparency, and risk causing harm. They have called for assessments to be co-designed with people with disability and representative organisations.

Coalition: Highlighted their introduction of the Participant Service Guarantee, designed to reduce delays and the administrative burden on participants and families. They did not detail specific changes to assessments.

Genuine Co-Design

Forty-six percent of respondents to our survey said more time must be allowed for genuine co-design. Many people said they had been left out of rushed processes that made them feel unheard.

Greens: Proposed legislative changes to embed genuine co-design into all future NDIS policies and reforms. They support sign-off from people with disability and their representative organisations on key changes.

Coalition: Stated they would continue to consult with people with disability and stakeholders and consider the findings of the NDIS Review. They did not suggest embedding co-design in legislation.

The Right Not to Be Forced into Group Homes

People in our survey made it clear that being forced into a group home is not acceptable. Participants want to retain the right to decide where and with whom they live.

Greens: Reaffirmed that no participant should be forced into a group home or shared supports against their will. They stressed the need to properly fund the scheme and restore the principle of ‘reasonable and necessary’ supports to enable independent living.

Coalition: Committed to continuing home and living supports that meet the needs of participants and promote greater independence, personal safety, and choice.

What Happens Next

We thank both the Greens and the Coalition for responding to our questions. We will share any responses from the Labor Party if and when they are received.

Every Australian Counts will continue to advocate for all major parties to respond to these community priorities. People with disability deserve to know exactly where each party stands before casting their votes.

Now more than ever, it is critical that the voices of people with disability are heard loud and clear.