Establishment of the new Ministry for Disabled People FAQ's

What is the timeline for the Ministry for Disabled People to be up and running?

From now until July 1, the Establishment Unit will be putting the bricks and mortar in place to ensure the new agency gets off to the best possible start, including transferring disability support services from the Ministry of Health (MoH) into the new Ministry, setting up new IT, HR and Finance systems, making sure that there is a fully accessible workplace and culture, and setting up any new functions that will be important from day one.

Come July 1, the Public Service Commission is expecting to have a Chief Executive appointed, and personnel transferring from exiting roles in MSD and MoH will be in their new roles. From this foundation, with all existing functions in place and running well, the Ministry can begin to deliver on its broader, transformational vision.

What is the Establishment Unit for?

A Given the scale and scope of the new agency, this will be a step shift in size and complexity. As a result, an Establishment Unit has been set up to make sure that the Ministry can start effectively, have disabled people’s oversight and partnerships in place, that there is no disruption to people receiving disability supports, and build an operating model that will equip the Ministry to deliver on its broader vision.

The Unit is a highly skilled project team who are completely focussed on having the bricks and mortar in place so the leadership of the new Ministry can take over a smooth running, efficient operation.

The Unit will also work closely with the disabled community to ensure the community’s vision is built into the DNA of the new agency. For a start, while currently we are referring to a ‘Ministry for Disabled People’, we will collaborate with the disability community to identify an appropriate name.

How will Disabled People be involved in the establishment and delivery of the new agency?

A It’s important that the Ministry is set up in a way that is in partnership with disabled people and whānau, provides opportunities for people to be involved and keeps everyone up to date with what is happening.

To do that, the Establishment Unit has focussed on making sure there is strong input and oversight from the disabled community and Māori on the set up of the Ministry, and recruitment of disable people into the unit to help ensure the new agency is fit for purpose. 

We have heard your voices and want you to know that the establishment of the Ministry must embody the principle of “nothing about us without us” and so the overall responsibility for its establishment will be led by disabled people. The nine strong Establishment Governance Group is made up of six disabled people, with three of those being tangata whaikaha Māori. One of these six people will be a co-chair. Government will be represented by  two senior officials and an independent co-chair.

In addition, there will be a Community Steering Group made up of disabled people, whānau and family who will provide advice and guidance and provide connections across the wider disability community.

The Community Steering Group will largely focus on the new Ministry core features, its strategic vision, culture and behaviours, and the mechanisms that will ensure disabled people have voice and leadership at all levels of the Ministry.

In early 2022 the primary and urgent focus of the Establishment Unit will be on engaging closely with our partners in the disabled community.

The Unit will ensure the community has input into all the important decisions, such as naming the Ministry and creating advisory and partnership groups for the Ministry.

How will Māori be involved in the establishment and delivery of the new agency?

Initial engagement has undertaken with largely positive feedback, however more extensive engagement with Māori will be required in the establishment of the Ministry, its governance arrangements, and ongoing work.

The Executive Director of the Establishment Unit will be supported by a Chief Advisor Disability and a Principal Advisor Māori so that there is strong leadership across all areas, and the leadership group establishing the new agency includes six disabled people, with three of those being tangata whaikaha Māori.

There will also be a Community Steering Group made up of disabled people, whānau and family who will provide advice and guidance and provide connections across the wider disability community.

As a disabled person and stakeholder, how can I be involved?

Our focus to date is getting the very functional aspects needed for the new Ministry underway, in particular the systems and processes we need firmly in place to ensure people receiving DSS are supported seamlessly during this period. At the same time, we have been building a leadership structure that makes sure there is strong input and oversight from the disabled community and Māori on the set up of the Ministry.

The overall leadership group of the Establishment Unit will be led by disabled people, and there will also be a Community Steering Group made up of disabled people, whānau and family who will provide advice and guidance and provide connections across the wider disability community.

In the New Year we will being engaging closely with the disabled community to ensure we hear the voices of as many groups as possible, such as disabled youth, tāngata whaikaha, and disabled Pasifika people.

You will have input into all the important decisions, such as naming the Ministry and creating advisory and partnership groups for the Ministry.

Will there be any disruption in services?

A key focus will be ensuring disabled people continue to receive support over the transition, with a view to improving access to services over time.

What’s MSD’s role in this and what is MoH’s?

It’s a very closely shared work programme. We are both working to support preparations to establish the new Ministry (hosted by MSD), including the smooth transfer of Disability Support Services; MSD is furthering work on Making Aotearoa more Accessible; while MoH is progressing the national rollout of Enabling Good Lives (EGL).

Will all of this work end up coming under the purview of the new agency?

A It’s anticipated that these strands will come together as work gathers momentum, but there are still decisions to be made, many of which require much more engagement with disabled people.

What does independent mean when the MfDP is embedded in MSD?

A MSD has acted as a host department for a departmental agency before and is experienced in hosting a range of independent or semi-independent entities, such as the interim Independent Children’s Monitor.

Once the Establishment Unit has handed over to the new leadership on 1 July 2022, and it has established itself and is in a good position to carry out its functions and mandate, the new agency will ultimately be functionally and operationally autonomous from MSD.