Federal Government unveils response to landmark disability royal commission

Peak disability advocates say they are “disappointed and distressed” by the Federal government’s response to a landmark royal commission, which failed to action key recommendations around the future of special schools, segregated workplaces and group homes.

The Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability, which spanned 4.5 years and cost almost $600 million, handed down its landmark report in September, making 222 recommendations over 5000 pages.

Four months after the recommended deadline, the Albanese Government finally unveiled its response on Wednesday, setting out its priorities in improving employment opportunities, safety, inclusion and rights by announcing a $371m investment package.

But, to the “deep disappointment” of 12 peak disability bodies, just 13 of the 172 recommendations the Commonwealth has joint or sole responsibility for have been wholly accepted.

A further 117 of those have been accepted in principle, and 36 more — including the establishment of a new Disability Rights Act and recommendations related to group homes and workplaces — will be subject to further consideration.

Six have been noted, including recommendations regarding ending segregated employment, and a new minister for disability inclusion.

With the remainder of the recommendations now the responsibility of states, Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said all governments were “absolutely committed to continuing this work in order to sustain long-term meaningful change for people with disability.

But Marayke Jonkers, president of People with Disability Australia, said what could have been a day of wild celebration had quickly faded to bitter disappointment.

“As a community, disabled people fought for 10 years to get a Royal Commission to try and save and change people’s lives, and then we revisited and relived traumas... to help create a better future for the next generation,” she told The Nightly.

“To have less than six per cent of the recommendations accepted... and no timeframe for the others accepted on principle is distressing. This could have been a watershed moment in Australian history.”

She said she wanted to work with governments to bring about urgently implementing all 222 recommendations.

Among the most significant of the royal commission’s recommendations were those regarding the future of group homes, and segregated schools and workplaces, which the six commissioners were ultimately split on.

The final report noted the evidence of “appalling treatment” in some group homes and a lack of autonomy, but commissioners were split over whether a concerted effort be made to phase out the facilities within 15 years, or do the work in stages “over a generational time frame”.

The Federal government said the proposals remained under consideration, with NDIS Minister Bill Shorten saying he did not yet have a “final view”, but the priority was “trying to give people choice and control over how they live”.

“Without being definitive about the future of group homes, what we’re doing is we want to make sure the money that is given to people in supported, independent living focuses on quality outcomes for them,” he said.

“But we are moving towards where people live … fulfilling lives of meaning and if that sometimes means they live with two other people, fine. If it means – dependent on their needs – that that is not the best arrangement for them, then we’ll be looking at that as well.”

Ms Jonkers said with every extra day it took the government to finalise a commitment to improving housing outcomes for people with disability, “the reality is people are dying, or suffering traumas”.

“The Royal Commission should be the gold standard,” she said.

There was a further split between commissioners over the future of differentiated schooling for children with disabilities. Three recommended special schools be abolished by 2051, while the other three recommended greater integration and partnerships between “mainstream” and “non-mainstream” schools.

The Government’s response noted the differing recommendations, and said it was now the responsibility of State and Territory governments to “(make) decisions about registration of schools in their jurisdictions, with the intent to strengthen inclusive education over time”.

Ms Rishworth said no government accepted the work was done in building a more inclusive education system, and the country’s ministers would consider how to make that a reality.

“I think the principle that comes out of this is that all governments have committed to more inclusive education,” she said.

But disability advocates said there needed to be a coordinated response to ensure children who moved around the country had access to the same educational outcomes and opportunities.

Matilda Alexander, chief executive officer of Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion, said it was crucial governments implemented all of the recommendations regarding schools.

“We really need to ensure disabled kids get support, not punishment, and are welcomed in every school,” she said.

Ms Jonkers added that if disabled children started life in segregated schools, they risked a whole life of segregation.

“There’s no special life after school... It’s so much about educating other students in the school about interacting with students with a disability as it is about supporting the students’ needs,” she said.

The commission also recommended a roadmap to phase out segregated employment by 2034, to which the Federal government said it would seek further consultation.

The Government didn’t commit to ending low wages for people with disability, which the sector has also expressed its disappointment with.

But improving employment opportunities for people with a disability is a key part of the government’s response, with more than $227m will go towards designing a specialist disability program, announced in the May budget, to help those with disabilities prepare for, find, and maintain suitable jobs.

A further $2.3m has been earmarked to create a disability employment centre of excellence.

Separately, $39.7m will go towards redesigning and streamlining the national disability advocacy program. Another $7m will be set aside to review the Disability Discrimination Act.

A recommendation to establish a new disability rights act, and an independent disability commission to enforce it, is still under consideration.

Ms Rishworth noted there were “mixed views in the disability community about whether they would prefer a Disability Rights Act, or for disability to be embedded in a Human Rights Act”.

Ms Jonkers said the lack of direct response to the recommendation was “really alarming”, and called on the government to enshrine into law the United Nations Charter of People with Disabilities Rights.

“At the moment, the current legislation does not allow there to be recourse... That was one of the recurring themes during every public session. So the fact we haven’t got a commitment to make that happen is a massive piece of the jigsaw puzzle missing,” she said.

The Greens’ disability spokesperson, Jordan Steele-John also criticised the government for not acting on the recommendation to implement a standalone minister and department for disability inclusion.

Ms Rishworth had earlier defended the decision, arguing there were already two cabinet positions - social services and NDIS - with responsibility for national disability programs and policies, and a job more broadly for many ministers.

Senator Steele-John said Labor had let down millions of people in its response because it had not committed to ending the cycle of segregation that so often led to abuse, violence, neglect and exploitation.

“We need the Government to commit funding for the radical transformation required to end ableism and discrimination in this country. We need a Minister for Disability to ensure this reform happens. We need collective liberation: to immediately raise the DSP, and end segregation in our workplaces, schools, and homes,” he said.

The Coalition meanwhile said it would “closely consider” the government’s response and acknowledged the thousands of submissions made.

In paying tribute to all those who had contributed to the royal commission, Ms Rishworth said the government was “absolutely committed” to ensure there was sustainable, long-term “meaningful” change for people with disability.

“Achieving the vision of the Disability Royal Commission will require all governments to work together, and each and every state and territory government, along with the Commonwealth, to be directly accountable to the Royal Commission’s recommendation. Our Government is absolutely committed to the vision set out in the Disability Royal Commission,” she said.

Mr Shorten said this would be a driving force towards a safer, accessible, and inclusive Australia.

“This is another watershed moment to stop the abuse of our fellow Australians, but there’s a lot of work to go on from here,” he said.

“I believe this will signpost the directions we seek to take as a nation, and the better treatment and true equality of people with disability in Australia.”