Arrow Right Arrow Left Bsky Calendar Close Facebook Home Instagram LinkedIn Members Hub Newsletter Plus Search Toggle X

Submissions

New Zealand Disability Strategy 2025 – 2030 Consultation

Posted in Submission, Government; Tagged Government, Accessibility, Maori sovereignty, Parks and recreation; Posted 6 months ago by DPA Less than a minute to read

Print

To: Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha 
Date: September 2025

 

Purpose

The submission responded to the review of the New Zealand Disability Strategy being conducted by Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha emphasising the need for the document to reflect the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) and Te Tiriti o Waitangi/Treaty of Waitangi, which both emphasise the need for inclusion, accessibility and partnership between tāngata whaikaha Māori disabled, disabled people and government.

Summary of DPA submission

DPA’s submitted feedback stressed that the current New Zealand Disability Strategy 2016 – 2026) is more comprehensive and detailed while still maintaining a focus on key areas identified by the disability community and government for action. DPA members have told us that they would rather the current strategy was kept in place than have it replaced with the proposed draft such is the level of concern with the draft strategy.

Also, of concern to DPA is that there are very few references to the needs of disabled children, learning disabled people, Deaf, rainbow disabled, tāngata whaikaha Māori or tagata Sa’ilimalo.

Members are dismayed that that the draft NZDS only includes five key outcome areas – education, employment, housing, health and justice.  Other crucial areas that are essential to be included in a meaningful disability strategy either as outcome area or as cross cutting issue are transport, disability support, digital access and climate change/emergency responsiveness. Failure to include these areas undermines the other outcome areas.

For example, access to transport for disabled people is essential for employment and health outcomes. Digital access impacts on access to employment, health, education, justice and housing. 

Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the UNCRPD are pivotal to any NZ disability strategy and everything within any NZDS should then flow from them.

DPA asks that

1. The NZDS be grounded in the objectives and aims of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) and Te Tiriti o Waitangi/Treaty of Waitangi.

2. The proposed actions be significantly strengthened to go beyond investigating and reporting and voluntary measures. We need concrete enforceable actions that will make a meaningful difference for disabled people. Enforceable accessibility and housing standards are long overdue. Accessible housing standards already exist, and we do not need to waste resources developing yet another set of voluntary standards to complicate things.

3. That the NZDS include the following topics either as a cross – cutting issue or as an outcome area: ableism, transport, disability support, digital access and climate change/emergency responsiveness.

DPA wants to see the voices of disabled people be more apparent in the final strategy which emerges - one that needs to be much stronger than the current draft.

 

 

Download

DPA Submission 2509 New Zealand Disability Strategy 2025 – 2030 Consultation (DOCX)

Related submissions

Related content