FED: Government not abandoning disabled: Newman

AAP General News (Australia)
08-04-1999
FED: Government not abandoning disabled: Newman

CANBERRA, Aug 4 AAP - Federal Family and Community Services Minister Jocelyn Newman today
denied the government had abandoned disabled people while announcing new support measures for
respite care.

Senator Newman will today announce a $150 million two-year injection of funds by the
commonwealth to help meet the needs of carers.

She said the money would top-up the existing commonwealth-state disability agreement under
which responsibility for accommodation, respite care and day care centres was largely left to
the states.

"We're contributing because we recognise with the other governments that there has been a
level of unmet need in that area which has been building up over a couple of decades," Senator
Newman told ABC Radio.

"It's going to need cooperative work between the states and the commonwealth in order to do
something about that.

"I don't think the disability organisations and the people with disabilities have taken too
kindly to seeing an argy-bargy between the states and the commonwealth over who should
contribute to doing something about it."

But Senator Newman denied the government was merely seeking to repair the damage done by
years of savage federal budget cuts to disability services.

"There's no way you can say we walk away from people with disabilities," she said.

"The area that has slipped behind is in accommodation and respite care and that home
support. That's where we were trying to give the states a helping hand.

"The commonwealth is putting its money on the table. We're yet to see the offers from the
states. I want to see that. I want to work with them so we get better outcomes for people with
disabilities."

Senator Newman said the government also wanted to slow the explosive growth in Disability
Support Pension recipients, which she partly attributed to the greater number of people who
were surviving previously fatal accidents.

"What we want to do is put measures for rehabilitation in early, training for job
opportunities in early and better employment service opportunities," she said.

"That will help people not be welfare dependent all their lives."

AAP rft/pwa/br

KEYWORD: CARERS NEWMAN

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