The ACT's Disability Minister said she had warned Chief Minister Andrew Barr she opposed capped spending targets on the National Disability Insurance Scheme before Mr Barr agreed to an annual target at last week's national cabinet meeting.
Emma Davidson, who is a Greens minister, said a proposed annual growth target of 8 per cent for the scheme by July 2026 was "heartbreaking" and said it may not meet the needs of people with disability.
But Mr Barr backed the proposal, saying it would ensure the scheme could provide "life changing outcomes for future generations of Australians with disability".
Federal, state and territory leaders agreed to the target last Friday, which Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said would make the scheme sustainable.
Mr Barr said the ACT government supported the goal of long-term sustainability for the scheme.
"A sustainable growth trajectory for the NDIS will support equity and fairness for all Australians living with disability, including for those not eligible for the NDIS, and ensure that every dollar goes to those who need it most," he said.
However, Ms Davidson said she would urge the Commonwealth to reconsider the decision. She said the federal government needed to talk with states and territories about the objectives of the NDIS.
"To talk about an arbitrary target without having conversations with the states and territories about how we actually meet people's needs is really worrying," she said.
"What I would like to say to the Commonwealth is come back and talk to us, we want to work with you to make sure that we're meeting people's needs. Let's do this together."
Ms Davidson said she made this position clear to the Chief Minister on Thursday when the agenda for national cabinet was released. A spokeswoman for Mr Barr confirmed he received an email with her initial views on the matter.
"My advice is this is actually quite risky for the ACT government because we don't know what they are talking about when they say they are going to achieve these targets," she said.
"We haven't had an opportunity to talk through the detail of what this really means for people trying to access the services they need to have a good life here in the ACT."
Ms Davidson said the NDIS was a "demand-driven system".
"While you may be able to tweak a few things around the edges for the short term, fundamentally, if we're going to make sure the NDIS delivers on its objectives we need to make sure that we're actually addressing people's needs," she said.
"That is what demand is, [it's] someone has a need met."
There has since been follow up discussions between Ms Davidson's and Mr Barr's office on the matter.
Mr Barr's spokeswoman said disability ministers would be required to prepare specific initiatives to reduce the rate of growth to the Commonwealth as part of the NDIS review.
There will be $720 million committed in next week's budget to lift the capability, capacity and systems for the agency which runs the scheme, the NDIA.
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