The abilityNEWS Daily
The Big Story
An audit finds most of the NDIS remains unchecked [image courtesy ANAO]
Audit finds the NDIS requires better oversight
The ANAO says the NDIS is adequately enforcing standards, but adds the Quality and Safeguards Commission needs to refine its strategy urgently. Media reaction unsurprisingly seized on the fact that 90 percent of providers operate in a wild west with no scrutiny at all.
Audit Finds Promise — and a Few Gaps
NDIS Watchdog Largely Effective, But Must Sharpen Risk Focus
The report was cautiously optimistic. The Australian National Audit Office agrees there is strong enforcement of the scheme: 35,519 compliance actions were taken in 2023/24, almost 3.7 times higher than the previous year. But complaints are soaring too: from 1,422 in 2018–19 to a staggering 29,054.
With 739,414 participants, the NDIS has become a national juggernaut careering out of control. The ANAO found the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission is doing a credible job of policing the small percentage of the scheme it oversees.
The problem is that this is not nearly enough to give the broader public confidence the scheme is working effectively.
Still, the auditor flagged weak spots. Intelligence systems are underdeveloped, data gaps remain, and there’s no framework for risk-based regulation. But most critically, the Commission regulates only a fraction of providers—leaving unregistered operators largely beyond its sight.
Minister McAllister sees progress:
“We appreciate the Commission’s full commitment to addressing all the audit’s findings,” she says, in reference to the NDIA’s willingness to strengthen procedures. And the Commission has already launched a new DART program, designed to bring better data and risk-based regulation into focus.
In other corners, media outlets are less impressed. News Ltd dubbed the scheme a “wild west,” saying over 90% of providers evade scrutiny—framing it as a regulatory failure.
This builds on Bill Shorten’s comments last year, singling out “dodgy providers” and blaming them for derailing the scheme.
It’s fair warning: the NDIS Commission must implement better monitoring, sharper intelligence, and stronger oversight to safeguard participants and taxpayer trust.
Author’s Note
The important story today is last week’s ANAO Report - but that’s not news. The big story is that NSW Premier Chris Minns has decided to fight the federal government’s move to make the states responsible for providing Foundational Supports.
He’s rightly identified these are a huge and growing issue. He wrongly thinks he can avoid taking responsibility for solving the issue. Mark Butler won’t be accepting this back.
All Minns’ intervention means is that the squabbling will continue. People with Disability will suffer.
The Briefing
Contributing to the framework [image courtesy Physical Disability Australia]
An update on changes to NDIS – New Planning Framework starting mid 2026
by NDIS
The NDIS will introduce a new planning framework from mid-2026, aiming to improve support delivery for participants. This follows ongoing reviews and stakeholder feedback seeking greater transparency and consistency in individual plan funding and outcomes.
The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA) is currently being reviewed and your help is needed
by Disability Advocacy Network Australia
The government is reviewing the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 in response to recommendations from the 2023 Disability Royal Commission. Public consultation is open until October 2025, with individuals and organisations invited to share their views.
Sector Responds to Workforce Census Findings
by National Disability Services
The 2025 Workforce Census marks a decade of collecting data on employment trends within the disability support sector. This year’s results highlight challenges in workforce retention, inclusion efforts and the pace of sector-wide reform.
Not All Disabilities Are Visible. Let’s Talk About Hidden Disability
by Living My Way
Not all disabilities are visible, and misunderstanding hidden conditions can lead to unfair judgement and exclusion in daily life. Living My Way encourages greater awareness and empathy to support people whose disabilities may not be immediately apparent.
Tasmania's Down Syndrome representative
by Down Syndrome Australia
Sandon Overton from Tasmania shares his experience as a new member of the Down Syndrome Advisory Network, highlighting recent activities. The group focused on leadership, values, advocacy and welcomed discussions around inclusive workplaces and equal treatment.
The Wrap
Postcode politics could complicate Labor’s late and little NDIS reform
by AFR
Labor’s plan to restrict NDIS eligibility for children in the future should be a starting point for more substantial reforms that address the level of benefits received by existing participants. But new revelations about Labor voters receiving these benefits may make reform more difficult, says the AFR.
Autism’s great NDIS divide revealed
by AFR
The National Disability Insurance Scheme is being accessed by residents diagnosed with autism in Sydney’s west and south-west at rates up to six times higher than those in the city’s more affluent northern and eastern suburbs, according to a new analysis that breaks down participation by suburb. An analysis of data by the Menzies Research Centre has revealed broad geographic disparities in NDIS participation rates, which are much higher in lower socioeconomic areas. The disparities between richer and poorer postcodes are more extreme for participants with a primary diagnosis of autism and developmental delays.
NSW Premier’s fighting talk on hospital funding deal
by The Australian
NSW Premier Chris Minns says the federal government is “in for a rude shock” if it intends to intimidate the states into a new hospitals funding agreement by linking it to plans to rein in the budget for the National Disability Insurance Scheme. This is despite state and territory governments making an in-principle agreement in 2023 on a new deal to accept more responsibility for people with lower-level disabilities in return for higher commonwealth contributions on hospital funding. The agreement has failed to be finalised, with Mr Butler urging the states to get behind his plan to work towards limiting the yearly spending growth of the NDIS to 5 per cent by providing different support to autistic children through a proposed Thriving Kids program.
NSW Premier Chris Minns warns Albanese government of ‘rude shock’ on NDIS and hospital funding negotiations
by Sky News
State and federal governments could face a major funding fight over the NDIS and hospitals as NSW Premier Chris Minns declares he won’t be “intimidated” by Health Minister Mark Butler. “I think they’re in for a rude shock if they think we’re going to be intimidated into signing up to a bad deal in relation to the NDIS without a big national solution in relation to health.”
Thousands of Victorians with disabilities face losing their homes
by The Age
Thousands of Victorians with profound disabilities face the prospect of eviction from their group homes and the loss of carers they have relied on for years due to a funding stand-off between private providers, the state and the federal government. Almost 60 Victorian supported independent living homes caring for the state’s most vulnerable residents have been closed in the past 2½ years, and the not-for-profit organisations appointed to take over the state’s disability accommodation sector eight years ago have confirmed they are now operating with only one month’s cashflow.
‘Not properly designed’: Campell Newman declares Julia Gillard ‘key person responsible’ for shocking NDIS rorts and mounting cost blowouts
by Sky News
Former Liberal Queensland premier Campbell Newman has said ex-Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard is to blame for the startling amount of NDIS rorts and scams and said the scheme was “poorly designed and conceived”. He reiterated that his “simple complaint at the time” was that the NDIS was being designed and implemented in “haste” and that it had not been “properly thought through”.
Revealed: How many NDIS providers operate without watchdog scrutiny
by Daily Telegraph
Exclusive:The NDIS watchdog set up to protect participants on the $52 billion a year scheme has been slammed in a damning audit, which found it has no eyes on more than 90 per cent of providers. The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO)’s report released on Wednesday found the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, set up in 2018, is only checking on registered providers, which make up just six per cent of the market.
The Diary
