Portfolio — 27 June 2026

Minister McAllister used a media release to set out the fiscal and structural case for the government's NDIS reform package, anchoring the entire package around a projected cost trajectory that, without intervention, would reach $70 billion per year by the end of the decade [TA-260626-ndis-4e6579563726]. The reforms are designed to bring that figure to approximately $55 billion annually — a $15 billion reduction that McAllister presented as both fiscally necessary and achievable through specific legislative and administrative levers rather than broad eligibility cuts.

The largest savings driver McAllister identified is changes to unscheduled reassessments, with most measures scheduled to commence in October following passage of the reform bill. On fraud and program integrity — a line of effort the government has consistently emphasised since taking office — McAllister cited $1.35 billion in total investment, including $800 million allocated in the current budget, and claimed the estimated fraud rate has fallen from 20 per cent to 8 per cent [TA-260626-ndis-4e6579563726].

That figure, if sustained, represents a significant shift in the scheme's integrity baseline and will likely attract scrutiny from the disability sector and parliamentary committees in coming weeks.

Two specific program-level decisions were also disclosed. The Social and Community Participation budget will be reset to 2023 levels — a measure the government frames as expenditure control but which advocacy groups have previously characterised as a funding reduction for a heavily used support category. Separately, McAllister confirmed $4 billion in joint funding has been secured with states and territories for the Thriving Kids program, positioning early intervention as the structural alternative for children who may no longer qualify under revised NDIS eligibility settings [TA-260626-ndis-4e6579563726].

On eligibility — the most contested dimension of the reform package — McAllister reaffirmed the government's commitment to working with state and territory disability ministers to ensure alternative supports are operational before eligibility changes take effect in January 2028. The January 2028 date provides a meaningful lead time, but the credibility of that assurance will depend on the pace and scope of agreements with jurisdictions.

The media release does not detail what those alternative supports will look like or which jurisdictions have committed.