Commitment 3 – AFDO Political Platform
3. Commitment to set aside, as a clearly defined reserve fund, the full and ongoing funding of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and to provide any necessary legislation to this effect. This must be at the level required for the full Scheme each year, including any funds remaining being retained in the reserve fund, including from any budget underspend in any given year.
This is to provide certainty for all approved participants and for the long term security of the Scheme.
The NDIS is the greatest social reform of our time and, as such, it is critical that it is fully funded at the required level for the longer term.
An indication that funding is outlined in forward estimates provides no certainty for people with disability, their families, or for any Australian who may acquire a disability in the future.
As an insurance scheme, it is counterintuitive that the NDIS remains the subject of annual reviews of funding at every Federal Budget. Other levels of government are also co-contributors to the scheme, and this also needs to be addressed to ensure that full contributions continue to be made to the required levels.
People with disability that are in and eligible for the Scheme must have the assurance and certainty that their funding won’t be cut off or reduced at some time in the future.
AFDO calls for a Reserve Fund to be legislated and operated for the NDIS for the full amount required to be funded for the Scheme each year and to hold any unexpended funds for future scheme use in any financial year. The agreements with other levels of government must likewise protect the full amounts required for the operation of the scheme.
This would provide the certainty that people with disability, their families, supporters and the wider Australian public require.
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