National kick disabled community in the face AGAIN
Labour pledges to scrap controversial Disability Support Services Bill
Labour says it will scrap the controversial Disability Support Services Bill if it gets into power at the next election.
People with disabilities, carers and advocates gathered at Parliament on Thursday to handover a petition against the bill.
Organised by New Plymouth mother and disability carer Victoria Coleman, the petition garnered 16,458 signatures in five weeks.
The bill is currently before select committee, after public hearings began last week.
The community is concerned it will strip them of their rights and funding, despite disability minister Louise Upston saying it won’t change any current arrangements.
Labour’s disability issues spokesperson Priyanca Radhakrishnan, speaking to the crowd gathered outside Parliament, called it a terrible bill, and said Labour would get rid of it.
“Disability communities have long fought for self-determination through the principle of ‘nothing about us without us’, and it is hugely disappointing to see the government do the exact opposite again,” she said.
RNZ
I will never understand why the disabled community gets repeatedly beaten up by this Government.
I get that National, ACT and NZF shit on Māori for their redneck electorate.
I get that National, ACT and NZF bash beneficiaries for ideological pretensions.
But I never get why they are so cruel to care givers and the disabled community.
Why?
Māori for racist reasons, I get that.
Beneficiaries for reactionary angry voters.
But the disabled? Why on earth hurt them over and over and over again?
No one hates the disabled.
There are no votes to harvest from harming them.
I think the cruelty handed out to the disabled is National, ACT and NZF at their bullying best.
It is a community exhausted by care giving and it is a community that is too tired with the never ending daily challenges of looking after and caring for a disabled family member to be able to fight back when the Government comes looking for money to save.
National, ACT and NZF are bullying this community to mug them so they can tick a neoliberal box in 3 years time that says 30/30/30 debt to GDP ratio.
They are robbing a disabled community too exhausted to fight back so they can make the money men happy.
I think this is a despicable Bill, especially after this Government just kneecapped care givers.
Look.
OF COURSE whanau should be the first port of call for disabled people!
A member of the family should absolutely step forward as a caregiver IF THAT IS POSSIBLE and ONLY after the Government resets the amounts of money it pays caregivers ALONGSIDE total subsidisation of transport ALONGSIDE frequent breaks with other caregivers.
We should empower whanau with proper reimbursement to be the caregiver in the first place. But if that isn’t possible FOR WHATEVER REASON – then the State takes on the obligation of care providers.
But that isn’t what is happening here. What is happening here is the Government are dumping the entire responsibility of disabled people onto their whanau, whether that whanau has the capacity to do that minus properly reimbursing whanau when they do step up as caregivers.
Disability isn’t a choice, our obligation as a civil society is to provide the resources that enables the agency of our disabled citizens and whanau. What National, ACT and NZF is doing here is dumping that obligation onto whanau and washing their hands of it.
This is the culture of selfishness as a political movement.
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Great headline Martyn – yes it’s National who are kicking the disabled in the face again, Upston is just the means by which to do it. I have a g/dau who has cerebral palsy – it’s a very sad life-long condition. She is 17 going on 5! The Disability Support Services Bill introduced to NZ parliament 17/5/2026 has to be scrapped – in fact it should never have been introduced in the first place. It’s either genes or luck whether you have a disabled child and no one would wish that on anyone or make it more difficult for their ongoing care. What sort of people are these RW voters? How are there so many smug, self-absorbed and spiteful people out there? “There but for the grace of God go I”, is an expression of humility, empathy and gratitude.
Absolutely right on point Patrize.