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The peak advocacy body, People with Disability Australia is calling for the appointment of a designated Minister for Disability in the wake of Labor’s landslide election win.
Prior to the reinstatement of the Albanese government, advocates from across the country outlined their recommendations for a more disability inclusive Australia and now PDA has weighed in.
A statement released by People with Disability Australia, called for seven key priorities for the community which included the creation of a Minister for Disability Inclusion in Federal Cabinet and the establishment of a dedicated Department of Disability Equality and Inclusion.
CEO of Physical Disability Australia (PDA), Jeremy Muir, has gone one step further, calling on the Labor government to prove that it has heard the disability community.
Those of us living with disabilities must be at the forefront of disability inclusion, disability policy and disability programs. Our lived experiences of disability need to be the foundations from which real and positive change grows.
Jeremy Muir
The notion of a dedicated Minister and Department for Disability has been the subject of numerous debates since its appearance in the Disability Royal Commission Recommendations, which were released in September 2023.
In the lead-up to the election, Green’s Senator, Jordan Steele-John, a member of the Australian Senate from Western Australia who lives with disability, had previously announced the party’s intention to create a Minister for Disability within the Federal Cabinet.
It will give us the opportunity to actually ensure that the voices of disabled people are heard within government and that disabled community have an individual to hold accountable when government lets us down
Jordan Steele-John
PDA was quick to congratulate Labor ’s Ali France, who has an acquired disability, on winning the seat of Dickson in Queensland, in doing so beating leader of the Opposition, Peter Dutton. The Peak body also shared congratulations with Senator Jordon Steele-John on his re-election.
In a statement on their website, PDA claimed that much of the disability community feels a sense of optimism.
“Let's hope that the voices of these two representatives are heard and listened to by government, and that positive change is on the cards,” it read.
Vice President of Physical Disability Australia, Mark Pietsch, says people living with disability belong in the room where the conversation takes place.
We're not an afterthought. We're citizens, leaders, parents, professionals, entrepreneurs, artists, voters. We are the faces, minds and bodies of disability and we're ready to shape the future of this country for people living with disability.
Mark Pietsch