Straight Shooters with Hollie Hughes
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On Sydney Now, you can't handle the truth. The Straight Shooters. Our Straight Shooter this afternoon is the former Liberal Senator, Holly Hughes. And I say former because Holly's joining me in studio today because she's no longer in Canberra. Hello, Holly. Oh, isn't it joyous? Joyous. What a day. I mean, it's pouring with rain in Sydney, but...

You know, no, look, it really feels quite liberating, to be honest with you. You've got a spring in your step, I've got to say. You know, they say you look about 10 years younger straight after you leave politics. So, you know, I'm looking forward to that. Look, there's a lot of big issues around in the political sphere at the moment. But there's one thing I really wanted to focus on with you today because I know it's an area that you have a lot of passion about. And we've spoken a lot on this program about it in the last six months as well.

And that's the NDIS. Now, given it is the 1st of July, there are changes to the NDIS. And we know this system needs to be reined in because of the way it has been abused by unscrupulous operators, by other people who've ripped off the system.

The changes being introduced today where we've had, for instance, therapy rates frozen, changes to physiotherapy. Is this going too far? Is this a step in the right direction? Look, I actually think in some ways it's a step in the right direction. Personally, they have this thing called a price guide. And a lot of providers have manipulated and used that price guide to charge much more to an NDIS participant, much more than they would charge any other Joe Blow who walks in off the street.

And, you know, I've actually experienced that myself with one of my son's providers charging me the NDIS rate. And when I said, can you charge me the rate so I can, you know, I self-manage, I pay you directly so I can claim on my health insurance because you actually can't do both for some reason. Uh,

his sessions dropped, two sessions a week dropped $40 each. How did they get away with that for so long? Well, and look, this was not an ill, there was no ill intent by this provider, but they believed that because it was an NDIS price guide, that that was somehow what they had to follow. And I guess for businesses as well that have to submit paperwork on behalf of the participant, there's an element of additional administrative work. But because I self-manage my son's plan, I do that work.

So look, there has been a little bit of that over-exorbitant, you know, and this is why people like veterans and others have struggled to get in to see some of these allied health professionals because the NDIS rate has been so much higher. - So it's more lucrative for some of these health-- - Absolutely it is. And I think, you know, to level the playing field, I've always argued that there shouldn't be a different rate, whether you're a veteran or you're on a healthcare card or you're an NDIS participant or whatever it is, it's all the same rate.

But the price guide as well, in my view, has distorted the market because it's a sort of a flat rate, if you like, in metropolitan areas. So it's pretty much the same in Sydney as it is in Adelaide as it is in Brisbane. And then you get the rural and regional rates on top of that. They've also done something today about the travel claim.

And I'm personally in favour again of this because when my son was first diagnosed, we lived in the bush and there was a speech therapist out there who offered to come and see us in Moree, wanted to charge me travel from the town she was coming from about 100, 120 k's away.

but was going to charge the travel to every single one of the kids she was seeing, and she wanted to see four or five kids on the same day that suited her. So some of these providers, quite honestly, have done it to themselves because they got greedy and they charged every single participant for travel rather than a percentage of the travel. And so, you know, some of these providers, there'll be some that are going to take a hit that were doing the right thing, but some of these providers have really rotted this system. And the reality is,

I fear it's on the verge of collapsing. It's getting too big. The whole system. The whole scheme. This is unsustainable the way it is, and it's a demand-driven scheme. So the only way it works is either less participants or smaller plans. And so the people that are missing out most are the people with the most profound and severe disabilities. I'm fascinated to know, just if we wind back to the start of the process, when somebody...

or their carers believe they're in need of NDIS assistance. How does the process start? Is it initially a GP's consultation, makes a judgment that yes, believe this person needs this help? - Look, it depends on the process you go through. So my son was already diagnosed with a disability when the NDIS came in and was already in receipt or attached to a service provider. And so we kind of edged into the scheme basically just as a transition when it came across.

But there's GP referrals, there's pediatricians, and then some people are going to see, obviously, psychologists and psychiatrists when you've got some psychosocial stuff. And again, psychosocial, bipolar, schizophrenia, those sorts of things, are

Should they or should they not be on the NDIS? And I've met with providers who used to do psychosocial services who've stopped doing them because of the way the NDIS funds some, not the others, and it's all become a bit piecemeal. And they're episodic as opposed to permanent. So, you know, there's a lot of issues there.

politicians, and look, I tried six years, banging my head up against a brick wall. There is very little political courage in that place. And someone is going to have to put on some political big boy and big girl pants because this was a bipartisan scheme. It needs significant reform. The most vulnerable in our society are most at risk. There's a lot of people that shouldn't be on it. And nothing frustrates me more when I see people misusing this scheme. Well, from the outside, you can now lobby and say what you really think. Not

Well, I pretty much said what I really thought when I was in there. But, you know, I can probably do it a little bit more now. Anthony Albanese today has made comments about his continual failure to meet with Donald Trump. This is what he told The Today Show this morning. The suggestion now that he'll be able to meet the U.S. president at the Quad meeting later.

this year. We'll have a meeting. We've had a few constructive discussions. I'm sure when we meet, it will be constructive as well. As you know, the president left the G7 because there was a war going on. And we all understand that, but this is just dragging out, dragging out, dragging out. He didn't go to NATO. He must have been told, look, you're no chance of getting a meeting at NATO. It's just embarrassing. It's embarrassing. It is actually getting to the point now

that our relationship with the US, which has really endured through all colours of president and all colours of government in Australia, and the absolute disdain that Albanese has displayed towards our relationship with the US, in fact, that most of his government has shown towards the US, and coupled with this appeasement of China, I think it puts us in a very precarious situation. What was the talk in the corridors in Canberra about...

Kevin Rudd? Because I think most of us from the outside cannot see how it is tenable to have Kevin Rudd as the US ambassador. Well, it's not tenable. It's absolutely ridiculous. There used to be sort of expressions around the corridors that if you wanted to like Kevin Rudd, don't meet him.

And if you want to hate Julia Gillard, don't meet her. And it was pretty well known that Julia was actually a really lovely person. Everyone that knew her had a lot of respect and really liked her. And has that respect has only, I think, grown since she left politics? Oh, absolutely, in the way she's conducted herself post-politics. I think she... In fact, I think there's a few former Liberal Prime Ministers that could take a leaf out of her book as well. But she's conducted herself, I think, really quite magnificently since she's left Parliament, not having been a fan of much of her policy work. But...

Kevin Rudd had this Kevin 07, this persona of, you know, I mean, the Milky Bar kid and this sort of popularity contest that he ran on. But yeah, anyone who spent five minutes with Kevin knows that that's... Yeah, the simple fact that Donald Trump is an emotional sort of character. He bases a lot of policy on relationships. And Kevin Rudd, you can't hide from the fact of what he has said about Donald Trump in the past, about the fact that...

The fact that it's a danger to the West? Kevin likes to think he's the smartest person in the room. And I think he likes to tell everyone that regularly as well. And I can't see that having gone down well at any meetings in the US, but it certainly wouldn't go down well with President Trump. I think if Albanese is serious about building our relationship with the US and, you know, he plays tennis, not golf, but perhaps he can catch up with Greg Norman, maybe even have a decent chat to Gina Reinhart rather than Denigrate, someone who is just a contributing fantastic Australian who have good relationships.

with Trump who actually can speak to it. That's what you need. It's about relationships with someone like Mr. Trump. Now, just lastly, KFC has released a bunch of research today. Not quite sure what KFC has done. I think it's about cost of living. But it's all concerning the increasing number of adult children who are living at home with their parents because they can't afford...

to move out of home. Their research has found 28% of Australians who live at home with their parents feel negatively about their social life. They feel living at home doesn't have a good impact on their social life. A third of these people, 35% who live at home with their parents, use the phone in the bathroom for more than 30 minutes to get some personal space from their parents. Over half, 58%, who live with their parents say their social life could improve

because they rarely go out to see other people because they're stuck at home the whole time with mum and dad. You know what? Boo hoo. What about their poor parents who have them at home? What about the parents that are starting to look down the barrel going, hang on, we can go have a cracking social life now. We can go and do some things. And you've got these bloody kids that won't move out. I mean, I,

Look, I know housing's expensive, cost of living crisis and all of those sorts of things. But the reality is a lot of these kids want to buy a house in the suburb they grew up in or the same area, and they just can't afford to do it. And so you've either got to look further afield, work hard. Look, you know, I'm going to be berated for this, but, you know, it was hard for everyone. Yeah, it's really hard today. But if your parents are able to keep a roof over your head, be grateful, buckle up.

Man up, get on with the show. Maybe donate as much KFC and put that money aside for a deposit on a rental. I don't know. But my heart goes out to the parents who can't get rid of these kids. I think I'll be in that category. I think my generation. Look, I'm staring down the barrel of a couple of years looking at that going, okay, guys, come on, come on. Holly, we'll talk to you soon. See you soon, Glenn. Holly Hughes.