Thousands of Australians took the opportunity to participate in citizen-led democracy on Reddit on Tuesday 15 March, engaging Jordon Steele-John, Australian Greens Senator from Western Australia, with questions on a wide range of topics including the NDIS, nuclear submarines, cannabis legislation and inclusivity during an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session.
Asked about whether The Greens stance on health care would see gender affirmation covered by Medicare, Jordon replied: “It is my strong personal view and the view of the party that healthcare is a human right – gender affirming healthcare included.
“I want to see all gender affirming healthcare covered under Medicare and me and my team regularly work with Transfolk WA to make sure our policy is in line with the community goals.”
In reply to a comment about his work with the disability community, Senator Steele-John added: “The work my team and I do wouldn’t be possible without the power of the disability community behind us.”
On the question of whether cannabis will be legalised in the near future, Steele-John said: “Yep I absolutely believe that cannabis should be legalised for recreational use over 18 and it was a policy I was proud our party could take to the election last year.
“It’s a sad state of affairs that the “war on drugs” waged by both major parties has stigmatised drug use and people who use drugs to a point where harm reduction policy is painted as this radical agenda.”
On the matter of autism and ADHD being included in the NDIS, Steel-John said: “I have heard from so many people from the community with ADHD and Autism and absolutely believe they should be covered under the NDIS.”
Asked whether Jason Ryman, the architect of Robodebt, should be in a management position with the NDIA, Steele-Johns said: “No he should not be.
“I’d love to see a reality where far more disabled people hold positions in the NDIA management and board and I think we’ve seen people with similar professional backgrounds to Ryman attempt to cause a lot of damage to the scheme.
“At its heart the NDIA is about people and giving disabled people the opportunity to live a good life just like anyone else. It always hurts to see decisions made by the NDIA that ignore the actual purpose and human element of the scheme.”
Questioned about his reaction to Peter Dutton’s calls for cuts to be made to the NDIS to pay for AUKUS, Steele-John replied: “No, just no. The disabled community have had to put up with so many attempts to undermine the NDIS including independent assessments, the Participant Service Guarantee and funding cut after funding cut.
“Each time our community has pushed them back, organised and stopped the cuts.
“I wish I could say I expected better from Peter Dutton but the reality is you don’t get to be leader of the Liberal party by being empathetic and understanding of people’s different life experiences.”
A 16 year old autistic, non-binary, NDIS participant and current student of TAFE QLD described the bullying they had received on a daily basis in the school system, to which Steele-John commented: “The Greens want all schools to be inclusive and accessible. We want teachers to be equipped with the skills to adequately support all students, and we want all schools to welcome and celebrate diversity.
“That could look like rolling out programs that aim to prevent bullying and encourage respectful behaviour, as well as providing adequate support for students who have experienced bullying.”
Asked about his thoughts on the nuclear submarines being based in Perth, Steel-John replied: “I am totally opposed. It creates the potential for nuclear submarine accidents right on our shores and in our oceans as well as being an incredible waste of money.”
Another member of the public asked Jordon his views on the lack of state government progress on making public transport more accessible to people with disability. Steele-John replied: “We need to see significant state and federal investment in our public transport system to make it accessible.
“We can do this by setting up a National Accessible Infrastructure Fund.”
Questioned as to whether he would like to see more disabled people elected to parliament, Steele-John said: “political movements need to be more accessible both for their members and supporters and political parties need to realise that we are 20% of the population and that is millions of voters.
Beyond that mind shift, we need to see Australia follow New Zealand and create a dedicated fund to support disabled people to be candidates.”
The full text of Senator Steel-John’s AMA session can be seen at: https://old.reddit.com/r/AustralianPolitics/comments/11rjb1f/hi_im_jordon_steelejohn_one_of_the_greens/?sort=old
Craig Hill is a Brisbane-based Social Justice Campaigner, Writer, Teacher and Business Consultant. He has campaigned for social justice in Australia, promoted human rights in China and worked with the homeless in Honolulu. He holds a Graduate Certificate in Business, a Graduate Certificate in Education and a degree in Management. He is also the General Manager of The Australian Business and Leadership School.
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