Ministerial Statement

Smith, Ms A.M.

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK (Minister for Human Services) (14:22): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement into the death of Ann Marie Smith.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK: Just over two weeks ago, no-one in this chamber knew the name of Ann Marie Smith. Today, sadly, we all know her name, for all the wrong reasons. Ann Marie Smith, however, was more than the name we have heard repeated many times over the past few weeks. She was more than the photo we have seen on our television screens and across print and social media.

Ann Marie was a daughter, a sister, a friend, a neighbour. She was 54 years old, living in her own home in Kensington Gardens, where she had lived for many years. Ann Marie should have been living a happy, healthy and safe life as independently as possible without fear of neglect. Yet it is clear that was not the case.

She should have had choice and control over her life. She should have been visiting friends or libraries or local cafes, leading a life we all take for granted. Instead, from what the South Australian police have reported, Ann Marie’s last year was a life confined to a cane chair surrounded by filth; she was malnourished and suffering from horrific pressure sores. No-one should ever have to endure such pain, suffering and apparent isolation.

As a minister and a mother, I am personally horrified by what has happened to Ann Marie. It brings home the fear that many parents who have adult children living with disability have expressed to me over many years—the fear of what will happen to their child when they die. Who will be there to look after them, to laugh with them, to care for them, to advocate for them and to protect them? I can only imagine how this fear has intensified, hearing the horrific details surrounding Ann Marie’s tragic death. My heart goes out to all those parents.

This is why we need answers quickly, why we need to collectively identify the gaps that have led to this tragedy. We need to find practical solutions that give parents and people living with disability more reassurance that they, and their loved ones, are not being forgotten, that their voices are being heard and that we are all taking time to check.

These solutions need to be done carefully and respectfully, without grandstanding or paternalism involved. We need to be doing this in consultation with the people with disabilities and their families. This is not a time to hastily force upon people with disabilities solutions that will unintentionally erode their rights, rights they have had to fight so hard to achieve for so long.

This is why the work of the task force is so important. The members on it are not political, they are not trying to get a quick headline. There are members who are disability experts, who have worked in the field for years and know the landscape, but more importantly there are members who know what it means to live with a disability or have a child with a disability. It is these lived experience voices we must be listening to and learning from: voices that are fearless, strong and considerate; voices that should never be accused of not being independent.

The South Australian community does not want to wait years for a judicial inquiry before we act. They do not want sound bites, they want real and effective solutions as quickly as possible, which is why the task force will be handing down an interim report on 15 June and their final report at the end of July. As we await their recommendations, I would like to thank the members of the task force for their diligence and considered haste during this time.

While we must look back at what appears to have gone wrong, potentially over many years, we need to also heed the words of advocate Samantha Connor, who herself lives with a disability and who, on Saturday 30 May, during a memorial held for Ann Marie, said that Ms Smith's death was about more than just service failures. It was also about loneliness, isolation and ableism, about people not wanting to have anything to do with disabled people. Ms Connor said that, while preventative safeguards such as police checks were important, it was crucial that the community also did its part. It was a brutal but honest statement and one we should all pay close attention to.

I would also like to remind everyone that this should not reflect badly on those disability providers and their dedicated careworkers who do such a fantastic job of caring for their clients on an hour by hour, day by day basis. I think, now more than ever, we need to recognise their amazing efforts and their commitment to ensuring their clients receive the support and care they need to live independent and meaningful lives.

Ann Marie died under the National Disability Insurance Scheme, a scheme that had bipartisan support in this state when it was first conceived. It is clear that while the NDIS implementation in South Australia was defined under a bilateral agreement, signed several years ago, its implementation has occurred under both Labor and Liberal governments. We therefore collectively owe it to Ann Marie Smith to close those gaps.

I take this opportunity to ask all members of parliament, providers, carers, families and community members to be vigilant, to check in on your loved ones and your neighbours, and to never be afraid to speak up.