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A cap on staffing at the agency overseeing the National Disability Insurance Scheme would end under a Labor government, the federal opposition has vowed. Labor's acting social services spokeswoman Linda Burney and shadow minister for disability and carers Carol Brown say the change would free the agency to make better long-term decisions for services to clients of the National Disability Insurance Agency. The announcement follows a Productivity Commission report finding that a 3000-staff cap for the agency could lead to poorer outcomes for the scheme, especially in its early stages. "The NDIA, as a corporate Commonwealth entity, should be given the independence to determine the most effective and efficient number of staff to deliver the scheme," it said last year. Staff numbers reached nearly 2000 at the agency in 2017. The staffing cap has been blamed for its use of contractors and labour-hire staff. "It’s time the Turnbull government listened to the Productivity Commission and took the roadblocks out of the way of the NDIS," Ms Burney said. "People with disability, their families and advocates have long been raising concerns about the staff cap – including delays and poor quality planning. "NDIA staff work incredibly hard – and this arbitrary staff cap is just putting more unnecessary pressure on them." NDIS architect Bruce Bonyhady has previously criticised the cap, saying there was "no excuse" for it. The agency's workforce, including contractors and partner organisations, is 6800 and the Coalition government expects this to grow by more than 700 in 2018-19. Social Services Minister Dan Tehan said the NDIA had increased the number of people working on access decisions and plan approvals, targeting the decisions which require more complex judgement. "This helps participants get the supports they require, reduces the number of plans that need review, and produces better and more consistent outcomes for participants," he said.

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