“I wish to acknowledge and pay my deep respects to the Traditional Owners of the land – the Ngunnawal people.
Introduction
Ladies and gentleman, distinguished guests.
DisABILITY DISCRIMINATION COMMISSIONER, DR BEN GAUNTLETT
“Australia’s Disability Strategy, Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities”
INFORMA NATIONAL DISABIITY SUMMIT
MELBOURNE (ONLINE), 16 AUGUST 2022
2 May 2016, Parliament House Canberra
Consultations have now been conducted in every capital city and some regional centres.
The consultations are a critical part of understanding the key concerns and challenges, as well as identifying leading practices and effective strategies.
The Inquiry is interested in hearing the views, experiences and ideas for change from as many people as possible.
Thank you Graeme for that introduction, and good morning everyone.
I am very pleased to be here. Guide dogs play a vital role in the lives of people who are blind or vision impaired, which is why it is so important to end discrimination against guide dog users.
Sarah - not her real name - studied law at university. Not only did she earn a good law degree, she won the university medal. She also won competitions for mooting- conducting mock trials for those of you smart enough not to have chosen law as your profession. She could not get a job - or even an interview - with the Australian public service because she has a significant disability, including using a wheelchair, and some verbal communication issues.
Australian Network on Disability Annual Conference. Panel - Big Ideas to change the employment of people with disability: Moving Australia from 21 out of 29 OECD countries, to the top ten.
