Blind Low Vision NZ are organising a day of action on Wednesday 10 June surrounding the Total Mobility scheme. The Government needs to know how important this scheme is to our community.
By calling and/or emailing into the Minister for Disability Issues Hon Louise Upston’s electorate office en masse, on the same day, we can show how widely and deeply felt these changes would be.
Keep reading to learn more, or skip to the end for the full information sheet.
Background
The consultation on the proposed changes to the Total Mobility scheme closed on March 22nd, but we have not yet heard the results of this. Meanwhile, the total subsidy is set to reduce from 75% to 65% on 1 July. Local councils have also been instructed to reduce their contributions to the scheme by up to 10%.
Two of the proposed changes are of major concern: 1) the introduction of trip caps, and 2) requiring periodic reassessments of users’ eligibility for the scheme.
By definition, capping trips means that people can’t get around as much as they would like. It’s the Government telling people how often they’re allowed to leave the house, and it’s completely unacceptable.
Periodic reassessments would put additional unnecessary strain on the users of the scheme, requiring people to pay money and do extra admin to prove they are still eligible for the scheme. It would also put additional strain on the system itself. It’s costly and pointless – people who are blind, deafblind or low vision who are eligible for the scheme will stay eligible, and there’s no need to keep proving it.
The Day of Action
Between 9am – 11am on Wednesday 10 June, 3 weeks before the subsidy reduction comes into effect, we are asking people to call the Minister for Disability Issues Hon Louise Upston’s office in Taupō, or email the Minister’s main email address. In this call or email, we encourage you to let the Minister know how you feel about the subsidy reduction and proposed changes, and how these changes will affect your life.
We are asking the Minister for Disability Issues to intervene and withdraw the changes to the decrease in subsidies. We are also asking her to speak up for the disability community in a time of financial crisis to reverse the Government’s decision. We are asking the Minister for Disability Issues to seek true consultation around the Total Mobility scheme and listen to the experts who use the scheme!
The goal is to get as many people as possible calling and emailing the same place on the same morning. The large numbers and purposeful action will communicate to the Government that this is an issue that is important to our community.
Who: Anyone who is affected by or has people they care about who will be affected by the changes to the Total Mobility scheme.
What: Calling the Minister for Disability Issues Hon Louise Upston’s Taupō office, or emailing her Parliamentary email address.
When: Wednesday 10 June, between 9am – 11am
Contact details:
Phone: 07 376 5563
Email: louise.upston@parliament.govt.nz
Information Sheet
Download our handy information sheet which includes a call and email script and an FAQ section.
You can also access this information via Audio File through the Telephone Information Service (TIS).
- Check here for the phone number for TIS depending on your region.
- Menu 3 is the BLVNZ Area of TIS.
- This sits in BLVNZ News, TIS Menu 34.
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