National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Senator McALLISTER (New South Wales—Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme) (18:30): Thank you, Senator Pocock, for the question. We have been speaking about this a little through the course of the committee stage. As you know, spending on social and community participation has grown very rapidly in recent years, and faster than other parts of the scheme.

We are conscious that we do need to take steps to rein in growth in some support categories. We've thought carefully about the way to do that that will be safe and will allow people to meet all of their needs across the scheme. You heard me indicate earlier to the chamber that, amongst the things the minister must consider in making a support determination, he or she must consider safety and must take advice on safety in making such a determination.

Total spending on SCCP alone is now $12 billion a year. That's tripled in just five years, and it now costs about the same as what we spend on the entire Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. We do think it's an area where we can rein in growth but do it safely.

I spoke at length earlier in the debate about an important safeguard that we are moving as a government amendment and the conversations that we've had in bringing that amendment to this chamber. I won't go over all of it again, but, in short, the safeguards will mean that support determinations don't impact supports that are essential to participants' health or safety, and that there is an escalation pathway where a person who requires continuous, 24/7 support is able to engage the agency.

There are, of course, all of the existing mechanisms that are in place under existing arrangements for the CEO to vary a plan or for a participant to request a review of their plan when certain conditions are met. The government will, of course, continue to engage with the disability community. This reform will roll out over time—not just the one we're speaking about but the other elements of the reform too.

We will be engaging closely with the disability community to understand how those reforms land and, of course, to do further work to co-design elements that are signalled here in the legislation but not yet enacted.