Anthony Albanese insists NDIS families shouldn’t panic over plan to cut 160,000 participants across Australia

Anthony Albanese insists families who use the NDIS shouldn’t be panicking despite his health minister having flagged that some 160,000 current participants will be removed from the scheme within two years.

The Prime Minister said the Government would work with the disability sector as it develops criteria for tighter eligibility for entry to the insurance scheme, which is expected to be imposed from 2028.

Narrower access to the scheme is expected to cut the number of people on it down to 600,000 over the next four years, from 760,000 now and a projected 900,000 by 2030 if there’s no change.

This, combined with cuts to the amount of money participants can use for social and community inclusion supports and other financial controls, is expected to cut $35 billion from the scheme over the next four years, and as much as $150 billion over a decade.

However, the government is yet to release the modelling that underpins its projections that the new eligibility rules – based on an as-yet unknown functional assessment tool – will lead to 160,000 fewer people being on the scheme than are now.

“People need to listen to what we have said very clearly,” Mr Albanese said when asked when that modelling would be released so families could stop panicking.

“We’ve said very clearly – consistent with my philosophy of no one being left behind – no one will be removed without somewhere for them to go, without those measures put in place.

“Part of the philosophy behind the NDIS is that empowerment. And so it’s not for us to just say unilaterally, we’ll just, here’s what we’re imposing. We’ll talk with the sector.

“We’ve made that very clear, very, very clear, as (health minister) Mark Butler did at the press club.”

Mr Butler last week also guaranteed no one currently receiving NDIS support would be cut off until alternative services were put in place by the State governments.

However, the Commonwealth is facing fierce pushback from the States, which have warned against cost-shifting despite already signing a deal to provide $5 billion for new supports.

Queensland had refused so far to sign onto the Thriving Kids program, which is intended to replace NDIS supports for children aged under 9 with mild or moderate autism or developmental delays.