Disability SA Client Trust Account
18/05/2011
The Hon. K.L. VINCENT (21:09): Second time today. I’m the one in the wheelchair; it’s pretty easy to remember. We will get there eventually, Tammy, it’s okay. As long as we know, I think we are okay. Thank you, Mr President.
The PRESIDENT: You’re welcome.
The Hon. K.L. VINCENT: I have already spoken at length about why I consider this decision to be both heartless and gutless, so in summing up I will be brief. I will, of course, begin by thanking my fellow members for their contributions, in particular the Hon. Mr Stephen Wade, the Hon. Ann Bressington, the Hon. Tammy Franks, the Hon. Dennis Hood and the Hon. Russell Wortley. I would like to just reiterate one phrase that the Hon. Ms Bressington used in her contribution, and that was the phrase ‘and now this’.
In truth, I do not think any phrase could quite sum up the fate of the disability community as it currently stands, if you like, as well as that ‘and now this’. First we have to spend our lives fighting for basic essential services, then we have to spend years waiting for something as basic as orthopaedic shoes, for heaven’s sake, then we lose, just for example, the availability of incontinence products at the Hampstead Centre so that people have to reuse or car-pool, if you like, their incontinence products—and now this.
It is obviously terrible that the government has decided to abolish the Disability SA Client Trust Fund, which has effectively managed funds for people with disabilities in this state for many years. It has made this decision without consultation, despite clients and families being extremely happy with the service already provided by the trust fund. I believe that it is a shame and indeed a disgrace that this government has chosen to take from some of its most at-risk citizens in order to achieve a mere $2 million saving over three years.
However, I would like to share some good news, which I will note the Hon. Russell Wortley has already touched on. Late this afternoon, my office received a call from a parent of an adult child with disabilities, who just today received a letter from the Department of Families and Communities explaining that the government has now, at the final hour, decided to defer the implementation of its decision to transfer responsibility for management of disability client trust funds to the Public Trustee until July of next year.
It seems that the government now realises that this was a rash decision, made on the run without due consideration of the true ramifications. This is good news, but not great news. It is good news because it will give clients and their loved ones more time to work out what has to be done to explore the various options available to them and to put the necessary arrangements in place. However, this will, of course, not undo the frustration, worry and panic that many of these people have already experienced due to the government making this policy on the run, nor will it, unfortunately, stop the move eventually going ahead come July 2012.
Basically, people are going to lose a service that currently costs nothing, a service that seems to be working perfectly well, as the Hon. Mr Wade pointed out. I have certainly not received any phone calls indicating that families or loved ones have any problem with the service and, as I indicated in my earlier contribution, parents and loved ones are indeed perplexed as to why this government has chosen to attempt to fix something that clearly ‘ain’t broken’.
I am told that the Department of Families and Communities is in fact doing a great job in managing these funds, while many have expressed concern as to the Public Trustee’s ability to provide the same service. In fact, if I may quote the Hon. Mr Darley—and I note that he has not given me permission to do so—in his words, it is a bit like putting Dracula in charge of the blood bank.
The decision to defer will not change the fact that people who transfer to the Public Trustee come July 2012 may well face increased costs. Members will recall the example that I gave in my earlier contribution in moving this motion where a pensioner with a mere $8,000 in the bank will be required to pay $1,630 per year for a service that currently costs nothing. Although earlier this year the minister indicated that she was in discussion with the Public Trustee as to fees and charges, it seems that nothing eventuated out of these talks, or at least nothing that parents and loved ones have been told about any reduced fees that may be on offer.
That, of course, brings us again to the issue of consultation, or indeed the lack thereof. It is incredible that the government made this decision to abolish the Disability SA trust account without consulting those who will be affected. In fact, I again point out that it was not until today, with 43 days to go until the decision would have come into effect, that the government sent out a letter to those who will be affected which provides somewhat of an explanation. To put it plainly, I find it very sad that I have to remind this government that consultation should be a fundamental part of policy change and not an afterthought.
What of the minister’s steering committee, which was established as a result of concerns and not before those concerns came into place, to identify and resolve issues related to the transfer? One can only imagine that this committee has found all number of issues involved with the government’s decision, for the government has made a monumental backflip by deferring the implementation until 2012. Obviously, I personally always thought the decision to establish this committee was a bit like putting the cart before the horse. Let us hope this government has learned its lesson and will in future consult and address issues before making rash announcements.
The decision to abolish the Disability SA Trust Fund was a decision made on the run—as I have already said several times, but clearly it bears repeating—without consultation or consideration of the true effects it would have on people with disabilities and their families. I believe this decision is both gutless and heartless, at the risk of sounding like a broken record. I thank you all for your support and ask you to continue calling on the minister to rescind this decision. Thank you very much.
