COMMITTEES

Ms MASCARENHAS (Swan) (16:19): On behalf of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights, I present the committee's report entitled Human rights scrutiny report: Report 9 of 2026. Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e). Ms MASCARENHAS: by leave—I am pleased to table the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights report No. 9 of 2026.

In this report, the committee considers 33 new bills and 281 new legislative instruments of which it has commented on nine bills and nine legislative instruments. The committee has also concluded its examination of two bills and two instruments. In particular, the committee concluded its consideration of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026.

The committee commented on a number of measures that they would like to restrict access to the NDIS and reduce the availability of NDIS supports for participants. Depending on the availability of alternative supports and services, the measures could have an adverse impact on participants' independence and quality of life, and accessibility and affordability of disability supports and services.

In this way, the cumulative impact of these measures in the bill may constitute a significant interference with the rights of a person with disability, the rights of the child, and the rights to an adequate standard of living, health and social security. The committee considered that for many of the measures in the bill, questions remain regarding whether the measures pursue a legitimate objective and are rationally connected to that objective.

The committee retains numerous concerns regarding the proportionality of several measures, particularly due to the lack of flexibility and the lack of adequate safeguards. The committee therefore considers that there is a significant risk that many of the measures in the bill, including the provisions that seek to tighten how permanence is to be assessed and reduce the availability of NDIS supports may not be compatible with multiple human rights, including the rights of people with disability.

The committee has also made several recommendations to assist with proportionality, such as requiring a person's individual circumstances to be taken into account when assessing whether treatment may be appropriate and ensuring that a participant would be no worse off if a support was provided by another scheme or service instead of the NDIS. The committee also concluded its consideration of the Defence Force Discipline Amendment (RCDVS Implementation and Related Measures No. 1) Bill 2026.

This bill seeks to make various amendments to the Defence Force Discipline Act 1982, including, among other things, establishing a new Defence mental health tribunal. The committee notes that, while the new Defence mental health tribunal may be less rights restrictive than the current system, the proposed system still raises serious and complex human rights concerns.

It is not clear to the committee that the service tribunal procedures relating to mental health would be compatible with the rights of a person with a disability, the rights to health, privacy and liberty. While there are some safeguards in the bill, it is not clear whether these are sufficient. The committee notes that the bill would apply relevant provisions of the Criminal Code to promote legislative consistency.

However, it has not been demonstrated that these provisions are themselves compatible with international human rights laws. The committee has therefore recommended that the government undertake a foundational human rights assessment of chapter 2 of the Criminal Code, which deals with mental health impairment and criminal responsibility. The committee has further recommended that the government consult with specialist human rights bodies regarding the human rights compatibility of the proposed measures in the bill.

I encourage all members to consider the committee's report closely. With these comments, I commend the committee scrutiny report No. 9 2026 to the House.