Tuesday 6 April 2021
As revealed in the Sydney Morning Herald, the Morrison Government's proposed independent assessments changes to the NDIS were never originally recommended as part of the Tune Review, instead they were inserted by a public servant on behalf of the government.
Australian Greens disability spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John said this shocking revelation was conclusive proof that independent assessments were about saving money, not about making the scheme work for disabled people.
"It is absolutely appaling that this government has the gall to claim that the Tune Review was independent when these documents reveal the government had a direct hand in ensuring the outcomes they wanted were written in by senior publiuc servants," Steele-John said.
"The Tune Review, unfortunately, no longer has a place in shaping the direction of our NDIS over the coming years. It's independence has been compromised and its authenticity has been demolished.
"Compulsory independent assessment are a concept that is being imposed on disabled people against our will and we've been calling for more trnsparency and consultation throughout this process, with good reason clearly.
"The Morrison government now has no choice but to scrap independent assessments and return to the drawing board, working with disabled people to co-design any changes to our NDIS.
"We should not have to fight the system that was created to support us. Our NDIS needs to be fixed and disabled people must be at the centre of the conversation because we know what the solutions are."
