ABC Radio Hobart Statewide Mornings
COMPTON:
The new federal Government have looked at the National Disability Insurance Scheme, they’ve commissioned a report into its capabilities and how it’s tracking so far. They’ve described what they’ve seen as a bit like watching a plane getting built while it’s flying. Mitch Fifield is the federal Minister with responsibility for the NDIS. Mitch Fifield, good morning to you.
FIFIELD:
Good morning Leon.
COMPTON:
You’ve commissioned a report, it looks into the National Disability Insurance Scheme trial site roll out. What ultimately does the report tell you about the way forward for the NDIS?
FIFIELD:
The report tells us two things, primarily. The first is that it’s pretty inspiring that the staff of the Agency have put in a herculean effort to get the trial sites off and running by the middle of last year. It’s also inspiring that there are now several thousand Australians with disability getting the better deal that they deserve. But the report is also sobering, because the theme that runs through it is that the decision of the former government to bring the commencement of trial sites forward by a year – a year ahead of when the Productivity Commission recommended – that that has fundamentally compromised some of the key capabilities of the organisation that they will need for successful full nationwide roll out.
COMPTON:
So, when you say compromised, does that mean that you might have to delay some aspects of the roll out? Or it’s compromised it is a sense that you might have to can some aspects of the roll out?
FIFIELD:
Well, what it means is that the agency has been so focused on the trial sites that they haven’t had the opportunity to do the work that’s required to simultaneously plan and prepare for full nationwide roll out. So just a couple of examples; the ICT system that’s put in place, look, it’s working okay for the trials but it’s not fit for purpose for full national rollout; there’s also a lack of clarity about roles and responsibilities in the organisation.
So when we came into government, I said to the Board of the NDIS Agency that I wanted their assurance that not only were they working hard on the trial sites but that they also had the capability for full national roll out. In response to that, they commissioned an independent review and that’s the review that I released yesterday.
But the most important thing here is that we have an honest assessment of the capabilities of the Agency; that we understand why these issues came about so that we’re in a position to address them and lay good foundations for the full scheme.
COMPTON:
Are you still committed to a full roll out of the National Disability Insurance Scheme?
FIFIELD:
Absolutely. I am determined, the Prime Minister is determined, that this Government will deliver the NDIS in full.
But we think it’s prudent to look at the foundations, and that’s the work that the independent Board of the Agency have done. And I might add, that’s the Board that was appointed by the previous government, this is a report that they’ve commissioned so the findings are completely independent of me. It’s a completely open and transparent exercise.
COMPTON:
I understand. Looking at the Report, you’ve said that you’re committed to the full roll out of the NDIS, can you still meet the timetables, based on what you’ve seen in the report, for the roll out of the NDIS?
FIFIELD:
I guess there are two things. One is the timeframe for the full roll out of the NDIS. Those are embedded in intergovernmental agreements between the Commonwealth and the states and territories. So that time frame can’t be changed unless there is negotiation and agreement between all the jurisdictions.
The second point is that the Board of the Agency has undertaken to provide advice to Ministers as to whether there are any implications in the Capability Report for their capacity to deliver according to the current target dates.
COMPTON:
You say that it might be more efficient to get the private sector more heavily involved in delivering some of the services. What do you mean by that?
FIFIELD:
Look, it has never been the intention under this Government or the previous government that government actually deliver the services to people with disability. The design of the NDIS has always been that it will be
not-for-profit providers and for-profit providers who will actually deliver the services to people with disability.
Separate to that, there is some capacity for administrative functions of the Agency to be contracted out and in fact, that’s already happening in Tasmania, where Baptcare are providing local coordinators as part of the scheme. And again, that’s something that happened under the previous government. So the intention was never that this would be a large government organisation. It was always that an individual would take their entitlement to the service provider of their choice and get that support. And where there is the capacity of outsourcing of administrative functions, as is already happening in Tasmania, then of course we should look at that, because we want to see the maximum dollars going to support people with disability.
COMPTON:
Mitch Fifield is our guest this morning, he’s the federal Minister responsible for the National Disability Insurance Scheme and we’re talking about a report released yesterday that has a look into the NDIS and how it’s tracking so far. Are there any plans to restrict the eligibility for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, to make it harder to get access to the packages?
FIFIELD:
No, not at all. The scheme is designed to deliver reasonable and necessary supports to around 460,000 Australians with permanent and significant disability and that’s what we’re intending to deliver on.
COMPTON:
So, no changes to tighten the eligibility. There was talk that the packages were costing more than first forecast, I think on the mainland; significantly more, in Tasmania; a bit more. Are you comfortable at the cost per package in the trial site in Tasmania of dealing with the youth that are involved here?
FIFIELD:
Look, we’ve only had two quarters of the scheme so far, so it’s still pretty early days. You’re right that the average package costs in the first quarter were higher than were anticipated, they started to come down in the second quarter. We’re taking a look at the reasons why that’s the case, but you’ve always got to keep a weather eye on the budget. We’re endeavouring to manage the scheme within the funding envelope, but we are not going to compromise in relation to ensuring that people who need the support, get the support according to the vision of the Productivity Commission.
COMPTON:
Good to talk to you this morning.
FIFIELD:
Thanks indeed Leon.