The New Zealand Disability Strategy launched a year ago has already had an impact on government departments’ awareness of disability issues. This is reflected in some Budget initiatives.

Vocational services: $44.6 million over four years

·Vocational services for people with disabilities will get a funding boost of $44.6 million over the next four years.

·$24.58 million is to implement the government’s vocational services strategy, Pathways to Inclusion.

·$2.73 million is to repeal the Disabled Persons Employment Promotion Act and revise the under-rate workers’ permit system.

·$17.28 million is to restore the time-limited funding of two initiatives:

Øthe Job Support programme which assists people with disabilities to get and retain paid work; and

Øsupport for around 200 school leavers with very high and complex support needs. Funding for these initiatives was due to run out at the end of the financial year, and will now continue on a permanent basis.

·This substantial funding package confirms the government’s commitment to provide genuine employment opportunities for people with disabilities, with the same rights and conditions as other workers.

·Allocation of the funding to implement the vocational services strategy will be: $1.06 million in year one, $2.35 million in year two, $9.28 million in year three, and $11.89 million in year four and thereafter.

·The priority for the first two years will be to strengthen and improve current provision of vocational services. After that, more emphaisis will be placed on developing additional services, particularly in employment.

·Repeal of the Disabled Persons Employment Promotion Act 1960 will also pave the way for people with disabilities to be treated fairly in the workplace. The act gives sheltered workplaces a blanket exemption from minimum wage and holiday provisions for all their workers. This is unacceptable.
Community housing: a further $20.53 million

·Another $20.53 million has been allocated to Housing New Zealand to provide appropriate homes in the community for former residents of the Kimberley Centre in Levin and Braemar Hospital in Nelson. This follows an announcement in October 2001 of initial funding of $2.9 million.

·Approximately 375 Kimberley residents will be resettled in the community over the next three years, while 80 Braemar residents will be resettled over a 14-month period, beginning in July.

·This funding recognises that caring for people with disabilities in large institutions is no longer appropriate. The residents of Kimberley and Braemar have the right to live in the community like everyone else, with the necessary support to meet their personal, medical and social needs.

Disability Issues Directorate: $52m extra

·The Disability Issues Directorate of the Ministry of Health will receive an additional $52 million in 2002/03, representing a 3.7 percent growth in funding.

·Of this money, $12.5 million is earmarked for price increases for aged residential care services. This new funding is on top of the price increase already given to the aged residential care sector which took effect from 1 December 2001. It will be targeted at rest home and dementia care providers in an effort to bring greater national consistency in prices.

·The increased funding will also be used for:

ØKimberley and Braemar deinstitutionalisation project transition costs;

Øincreased services for people with high and complex needs, and those who will come under the proposed compulsory care legislation for people with an intellectual disability who commit imprisonable offences;

Øvolume growth in community support services such as home support and carer support; and

Ønational consistency in prices, where appropriate, and enhanced quality of services.

Special Education: new scholarships

·As well as the initiatives already announced by Lianne, the Budget provides for:

Ø$366,000 over four years for eight scholarships to increase Maori speech language therapists;

Ø$225,000 over four years for six scholarships to increase the number of sign language interpreters fluent in Maori.

(Ruth, Parekura has already announced these initiatives in his Maori education package.)

Sport, Fitness and Leisure: $90,000 for Paralympics and other sports

·The Budget includes one-off funding of $90,000 in 2001/2002 to support Paralympic and other sports initiatives for people with disabilities, including a website and educational resources.

·$10,000 will go to Paralympics New Zealand to develop a website that will enable real-time information on the 2004 Paralympics in Athens to be available to team members, the media and the general public.

·$25,000 will support the purchase of a support boat to enable the Paralympic Sailing Programme to develop a high-performance base in Auckland in conjunction with Sailability New Zealand and the New Zealand Yacht Squadron.

·Educational resources will also be developed to increase New Zealanders’ understanding and acceptance of people with disabilities in sport, promote the value of sport for all New Zealanders in keeping with the government’s ‘no exceptions’ policy, and give people with disabilities full information on opportunities for improved quality of life through sport and physical recreation.

Talking Books for the Blind: free postal service to continue

·Funding of $194,000 in 2002/2003 and $776,000 in 2003/04 and outyears will be provided from Vote:Health for postal services that are currently provided by New Zealand Post for people who are blind.

·The funding will cover free postage of Talking Books to and from the New Zealand Foundation for the Blind library in Auckland and its members, as well as labelled articles for blind people such as cassette tapes, Braille items, computer disks and talking book machines.