Neoliberalising disability income reform: What does this mean for Indigenous Australians living in regional areas?

Emplacing Indigeneity and rurality in neoliberal disability welfare reform: The lived experience of Aboriginal people with disabilities in the West Kimberley, Australia

“…Disability is thus conceptualised as an arbitrary category in constant flux and change with each twist and turn of the capitalist political economy (Gleeson, 1999). While such framings of disability are frequently contested, we see this now most clearly with the latest incarnation of neoliberalism: austerity (Soldatic, 2017). In countries such as the UK and Australia, austerity has resulted in the reclassification of disability in ways that render people 'fit for work' and therefore ineligible for state support (see Grover and Soldatic, 2013).…”

“…This also raises questions about how Indigenous Australians will fare under Australia's new individualised support scheme (the National Disability Insurance Scheme), which has so far fallen short in terms of Indigenous participation (Gilroy, 2016). The impact of the continual tightening of eligibility criteria and the increasing focus on individual responsibility demonstrate how disability policy further compounds Indigenous inequality and disadvantage in regional Australia (Soldatic, 2017).…”

Disability poverty and ageing in regional Australia: The impact of disability income reforms for indigenous Australians

“…Further analysis suggested that regional centres were significant for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons living with disability for three additional reasons, beyond that of population concentration. First, regional centres are often the hubs of disability and general health services, alongside a range of other government institutions that are critically important to maintain a level of well‐being when living with disability (Soldatic ). Even though it is well documented that regional centres are under‐developed and often rely on fly‐in/fly‐out health, disability and medical expertise, such services remain more readily accessible and available than in rural and remote communities.…”

“…The minimal provision of emergency services and intensive professional specialization, results in frequent travel to large urban centres (Perth, Sydney, etc.) for many persons living with disability in regional centres, and in turn, family members who remain at home, such as children and young people, require the support of families and kin to remain in their homes during this time (Soldatic ). All of these factors combined, suggested that the interstice of living in a regional centre with a disability, would have particular implications for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons living with disability and their broader familial and kinship networks.…”

Policy Mobilities of Exclusion: Implications of Australian Disability Pension Retraction for Indigenous Australians

“…Given the highly racialised nature of these measures, practitioners, activists and researchers concerned with the advancing of neoliberal principles in Australia have been mostly interested in Indigenous social policy. In the meantime, other fields of social provisioning that have become increasingly important to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander wellbeing have received little critical attention (Soldatic, 2017). Yet, outside a few studies focusing on local models of Indigenous-disability care and support (Gilroy and Emerson, 2016;, there is almost no research examining changing disability income regimes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.…”