National Disability Insurance Scheme

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (15:07): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking a question of the Minister for Human Services regarding the NDIS.

Leave granted.

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY: The minister yesterday made comments concerning NDIS underutilisation rates and asserted that the opposition was somehow late to the party when it came to this critically important issue. This is despite the opposition putting questions to the minister in estimates last year and the shadow minister for human services conducting a forum concerning the NDIS and NDIS underutilisation in 2018. Given all this, does the minister agree that nearly 25 per cent, or $1.6 billion, of the federal government's $7.1 billion surplus has been achieved through underspending and that the cut to the NDIS is fair and equitable to South Australians living with a disability?

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK (Minister for Human Services) (15:08): I thank the honourable member for his question. The federal NDIS program has been fully funded, so for the honourable member to portray it as a cut is certainly contested. Some of the comments that I read in the paper this morning related that the spending on NDIS was lower than expected because not everybody had been transitioned yet. That would be more likely to apply to jurisdictions other than South Australia, which is very close to being at full scheme.