Radhakrishnan Priyanca; Upston Louise; Tuiono Teanau; Willis NicolaHon PRIYANCA RADHAKRISHNAN (Labour): Thank you Mr Chair. I thank the Minister for Disability Issues for answering one out of the three questions I asked previously. She might've missed the other two so I will put them to her again.I would like to know—this is a question in the public interest; many have asked me about it—what are the savings that will be realised as a result of the changes that were made on 18 March given that they were done in response to Whaikaha's funding shortfall as the previous Minister outlined. So what are the savings?Secondly given that this is an annual review debate looking at progress towards strategic intentions one of the intentions of course of Whaikaha is to ensure that disabled people carers and the wider disability communities are supported to be able to thrive and given that that trajectory of enabling more choice and control has been derailed as a result of the changes that this Government has introduced on 18 March I would like to know what other options were considered other than the changes that were announced on 18 March?So I will just outline those two questions again just so that we're absolutely clear in terms of what I'm asking for—and the answers can be very pithy and short; I'm just asking for a number. What are the savings that will be realised given that the changes were in response to a funding shortfall? Secondly what are the options that the Minister considered prior to making the changes on 18 March—so rather than just removing flexibility what other options were considered?Hon LOUISE UPSTON (Minister for Disability Issues): The first exercise in terms of the changes that Whaikaha made was about limiting the growth in expenditure; it was not a savings exercise.I have addressed the issues of the disability support services and the review that is under way and I'm not going to go into further detail.Hon PRIYANCA RADHAKRISHNAN (Labour): I refer to a press release that was put out on 20 March where the former Minister for Disability Issues said that no disabled person will lose access to funding for essential services equipment or support. Now given that the changes that were made on 18 March have limited—and I'll just use one example: travel domestic travel. So disabled people now have been saying to me that while they can move around within their community to access services many have family who live in a different region for example and now there is no access to the funding that they had prior to 18 March to be able to go and visit their own family that lives in a different part or in a different region which is then leading to them becoming more isolated as a result of this. How then does the Minister reconcile the two? This is clearly a cut to funding that doesn't allow a disabled person to travel to see their own family. In many cases family can't themselves travel to come to see the disabled person. How is that not losing access to funding for something that is an essential support?Nope? I'll keep going then. I also have a question for the Minister based on what her predecessor has said in the House which is that prior to the changes that were made to purchasing rules on 18 March there were—and I quote—no regulations no rules and no settings." Can the Minister confirm whether there were in existence any purchasing rules and perhaps the four criteria that are the purchasing rules—can the Minister confirm to this committee whether any of those were in place prior to 18 March?Hon LOUISE UPSTON (Minister for Disability Issues): What I can say—and I was hoping not to quote this—is the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet stocktake of Whaikaha which identifies significant risks that were in this financial period that absolutely directly contribute to changes that were necessary earlier this year: financial risks operational risks legal risks people leadership risks high stakeholder expectations. This is the mess our Government will fix with this independent review into disability support services to ensure disabled people get the support they need.CHAIRPERSON (Teanau Tuiono): Members that's time.Hon NICOLA WILLIS (Minister of Finance): Could the Minister just extrapolate—CHAIRPERSON (Teanau Tuiono): Apologies to the Minister; that's time and I was asking if an honourable member would like to report progress—move the motion.Hon NICOLA WILLIS (Minister of Finance): I move That the committee report progress on this bill. Thank you Mr Chair.Motion agreed to.House resumed.CHAIRPERSON (Teanau Tuiono): Madam Speaker the committee has considered the Appropriation (2022/23 Confirmation and Validation) Bill and reports progress. I move That the report be adopted.Motion agreed to.Report adopted."