Mr MOSSFIELD (3:05 PM) —My question is to the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, representing the Minister for Family and Community Services. Minister, will you confirm that the government will withdraw $100 million from disability services if the parliament rejects your attempt to cut the pensions of 200,000 Australians with a disability by $52 a fortnight?

The SPEAKER —The member for Greenway will come to his question.

Mr MOSSFIELD —Minister, isn't it the case that, even if funding were maintained, disability services in New South Wales will close because you refuse to meet the costs of the New South Wales social and community services award?

The SPEAKER —The member for Greenway is aware that this question is advancing more argument than is normally tolerated. He will come to his question.

Mr MOSSFIELD —Minister, do you support the leader of your party in New South Wales, George Souris, who called this morning for wage justice for social and community service award workers?

Mr ANTHONY (Minister for Children and Youth Affairs) —I would like to thank the member for Greenway for his question. It certainly gives me an opportunity to outline what the government is doing in the area of disability support. The first point I would like to emphasise is that we are not altering the rate of the DSP payment to those who are eligible for it. What we are doing, though, is ensuring that those people who receive a disability support pension, particularly future people who may enter the scheme, are given every opportunity through training and rehabilitation to properly access the labour market, instead of leaving them to languish like you did in your 13-year stewardship.

I would like to quote some figures. In 1992 we saw the biggest increase in disability support pensions—13.26 per cent. Wasn't that coincidental? That was just before the election in 1993. We also saw huge increases of 7.4 per cent in 1993, 6.49 per cent and on it goes. There is an absolute need, which the Australian community recognises, to ensure that we prudently provide assistance to those people on the disability support pension, rather than leaving them to languish on this type of payment, which is what you have wanted to do. You have given no assistance to these people and given them no opportunity, particularly when it comes to retraining for the labour force.

I notice that recently there have been a number of comments made about the SACS Award. The Commonwealth government is absolutely committed when it comes to employment assistance. In the proposal which went through this parliament last week—

Mr Swan —Are they getting the money?

The SPEAKER —The member for Lilley, the minister has the call.

Mr ANTHONY —As far as the disability support pension and welfare reform are concerned, the key elements are to get the next Commonwealth disability support agreement through the Senate. With the employment assistance bill, we are going from $1.3 billion to over $2 billion for employment assistance programs. As far as the SACS Award is concerned, we hope that the New South Wales government, for which we have given, through our previous agreements, indexation arrangements—

Mr ANTHONY —As far as other work is concerned, I understand that Senator Amanda Vanstone and other members are having further discussions on that matter.