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ELECTION 2010 – ANNOUNCEMENT
Minister For FAMILIES AND COMMUNITY SERVICES
PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY FOR DISABILITIES
INCLUDING PEOPLE WITH DISABILITY IN COMMUNITY LIFE
The Gillard Labor Government today announced three new initiatives to support people with disability and their carers participate in community life.
People with disability and their carers deserve the same opportunities as other Australians to play a part in their local community and access local facilities and public spaces.
The new initiatives are:
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Accessible communities – infrastructure grants of up to $100,000 to local councils to make buildings and public spaces, such as playgrounds, swimming pools, public toilets, and town halls, more accessible for people with disability. These grants will be offered competitively and be based on a matched contribution from local governments, with the Gillard Labor Government providing total funding of $5 million.
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An additional $1 million will be provided for digital playback devices and improved access to digital content in public libraries around the country to increase the accessibility of print material, such as books and newspapers, for people with vision and physical impairments and learning disabilities that have difficulty reading traditional printed materials.
- Leaders for Tomorrow – a new national program to help people with disability to become leaders in business, the community and government through mentoring and leadership development. The new $3 million program will provide 12-month intensive leadership support for up to 200 people with disability, including matching them to  a mentor in their field of interest.
- ‘Attitudes’ website – a new disability website will be created in partnership with the ABC to raise awareness of people with disability and disability issues. It will be developed and edited by people with a disability and provide them with a national voice. The Gillard Labor Government will provide $500,000 to establish the website.
These initiatives are part of an $11 million accessibility package to support the Gillard Labor Government’s National Disability Strategy which is currently being finalised with the states and territories.
The National Disability Strategy will commit all governments to a nationwide approach to improving the lives of people with disability and create a more equal society. The strategy will set out a 10-year national plan for reform, focusing on better inclusion for people with disabilities.
These new initiatives are in addition to two recently announced Gillard Labor Government plans to improve access for people with disability:
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The Livable Housing Design initiative, developed with the residential building and construction industry, to promote new voluntary guidelines for housing built to meet the needs of older Australians and people with disability. The Gillard Labor Government is investing $1 million working with industry to promote liveable housing.
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A new plan agreed with Australia’s four major cinema groups to fast-track new audio description and captioning technology to improve cinema access for people who are deaf, blind, visually or hearing impaired. This will be funded in partnership between the Gillard Labor Government, through a $500,000 commitment, and cinema operators.
The Gillard Labor Government’s accessibility package to support the National Disability Strategy is fully provided for in the Budget. Costs have been met from within the Departments of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government.
MELBOURNE
24 JULY 2010
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COMMUNICATIONS UNIT: Phone: (02) 9384 2220 | Fax: (02) 9264 2213
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