Ms ROSOL – Following on that question on Aurora: we have output group 1.7 which is Disability Services, 1.8 is NDIS; so you’re saying there’s no money in the output group 1.7 for Disability Services for funding at Aurora. I understand that they’ve put in budget submissions to the Tasmanian government for the position, not just to NDIS, to be funded and at the moment they cook thousands of anzacs every year to try to raise money for what they’re doing. Are you saying there’s no money in this line that could be allocated to them?
Ms PALMER – Yes. Our area of funding for those external providers sits in the $280 million that the Tasmanian government contributes through that.
Ms ROSOL – So you’re saying that –
Ms PALMER – What I can tell you is that with the money that you’re looking at in that line item, that’s reform money. But also, where we need to make sure we are investing is in individual advocacy, because that is not included in what you’re able to do with the contribution through the NDIS. We have a focus in ensuring that where you can’t get funding through that NDIS grant round because you don’t fit that criteria, we have a role to play there in Tasmania for Aurora that we’re speaking about; their avenue is through the NDIS. As I said to Ms Haddad, we have had conversations with them and we will continue to engage with them.
Ms ROSOL – Thank you. I have another question around the output in 1.7. I can see it decreases over the forward Estimates and the explanation for this variation is that it reflects the profile of funding in the 2024‑25 Budget initiatives, and that’s that reform that you’ve talked about, the implementation of the disability inclusion bill. Is this line reflecting that all that disability reform work will be complete by then? Can you explain the reforms that you consider will have been completed by that time, and can the level of reform be completed? I imagine there are things that continue on.
Ms PALMER – Thank you very much for that question and I will hand over those details to the deputy secretary.
Ms GRAY – The implementation of the act funding is largely allocated to the funding of the Office of the Disability Commissioner and the funding of the Office of the Senior Practitioner. The reform funding that you quite rightly point out ceases, we will assess that funding. As you would be well aware, when you’re creating historic reform, as the minister has outlined, and you’re fully implementing a very new bill for Tasmania, we don’t know what we don’t know, so we will implement, as we have outlined, for the next couple of years and then we will assess where we’re at with that implementation task there.
Ms ROSOL – Can I clarify one thing from that, then? I know in other departments, the Office of the Independent Regulator and the Office of the Implementation Monitor, they have separate lines showing what funding is allocated to them. It’s unknowable in here what the funding is for the disability commissioner and for the senior practitioner. Is that something that you have available? Could that be put on a separate line in future budgets so that we’re able to track what’s happening in those spaces?
Ms PALMER – Yes, we have that breakdown available.
Ms GRAY – As the minister outlined, we will look at future budgets at the ability to be able to delineate the disability commissioner separately. In response to your question, in the disability implementation of the bill budget, in 2024-25, $1.5 million; in 2025-26, $2.35 million; in 2026‑27, $2.35 million; and in 2027-28, $2.35 million, the total of $8.55 million. That is split between the Disability Commissioner’s Office, $1.84 million, and the Office of the Senior Practitioner is $510,000.
Ms ROSOL – Of the $2.35 million?
Ms GRAY – $2.35 million. In 2024-25 the split of the $1.5 million was $1.159 million and then $341,000.
Ms ROSOL – Great, thank you for that information.
