State and territory disability ministers have warned they may boycott an upcoming NDIS ministers’ meeting after being told each would have only two minutes to speak. In a joint letter to federal health and disability minister Mark Butler and NDIS minister Jenny McAllister, the ministers said they were “no longer able to confirm” attendance unless they were allowed to meaningfully contribute.
The complaint follows a proposed meeting format that would allot a 20-minute federal update on the government’s latest proposal — to move children with mild to moderate developmental delays or autism from the NDIS into state-run programs — followed by just two minutes per jurisdiction for comment. The ministers said that arrangement is “not reasonable or acceptable” and would effectively prevent them from using the Disability Reform Ministerial Council to drive national reform in the interests of people with disability, their families and communities.
While states and territories have been engaging with the Commonwealth through a new negotiating group and officials’ group, the letter stressed those forums were never intended to restrict disability ministers’ ability to represent their jurisdictions through the DRMC. The ministers said they would reconsider attendance if each jurisdiction were given at least 10 minutes.
A spokesperson for Mark Butler said the meeting is vital for progressing recommendations from the disability royal commission and tackling fraud within the NDIS, and that people with disability expect states and the Commonwealth to continue the work.
The standoff comes after Butler’s August announcement of the $2 billion Thriving Kids program, due to begin rolling out from mid-2026, which would divert some children with mild to moderate developmental delays or autism off the NDIS into alternative programs. State and territory leaders have been critical of the plan, saying some were blindsided by the announcement, though Butler says the proposals have been on the table for nearly two years.
