By Jolene Ogle
MINISTER for Education Kate Jones has hit back at Member for Noosa Glen Elmes who last week criticised Ms Jones’ support of a petition to demand answers for local families reliant on bus services for their special needs children.
Last week, Mr Elmes said launching a petition to call on the Federal Government to act was “scaremongering” and that the campaign did “nothing more than incite fear among families”.
In a letter to the editor, Ms Jones said she didn’t believe calling for certainty is “scaremongering”.
“I have been proud to join with transport operators and families across Queensland in calling for the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) to provide clarity on the future of school transport funding for students with a disability,” she said.
“Queensland has a long history of providing an effective school transportation system for students with disability. The NDIA wants to replace this system but has failed to explain how this will work.
“I have called on the Federal Minister responsible, Christian Porter, to provide certainty to families and transport operators. I will continue to fight to ensure families receive the information they need and are able to access the same quality, if not better, services under the NDIS.”
