The disability royal commission has revealed it will ask for an almost one-and-a-half-year extension to complete its final report, hours before the inquiry's 560-page interim report is expected to be released.
In a briefing for reporters on Friday morning, ahead of the release of the interim report, chair Ronald Sackville said the terms of reference covered by the inquiry were larger than any other royal commission in the past 20 years.
"The commission is not a sprint, it's a marathon," he said, explaining that it was tasked with investigating violence, abuse, neglect, and exploitation of people with disability in a wide range of settings.
"The terms of reference are extraordinarily broad, much broader than any royal commission appointed in this country since well before the turn of the 21st century."
Mel Harrison, acting director of communications, training, and media at People With Disability Australia (PWDA), the peak national advocacy body, urged the government to grant the extension as the inquiry has so far "only scratched the surface" of the abuse and violence suffered by people with disability.
"We urge the government to give people with disability from Australia more time to tell our stories," she told SBS News. "And we call for the act to change immediately in regards to the confidentiality issue, beyond the last of the disability Royal Commission."
Last week, Attorney-General Christian Porter announced to ensure the confidentiality of witnesses during and beyond the inquiry.
The announcement came after a long campaign by disability advocates calling for reform, citing concerns that the lack of safeguards would stop victims of abuse and neglect from coming forward.
The has so far held seven public hearings on topics including the experience of people with disability in education settings and in group homes. Mr Sackville compared it to the child abuse royal commission, which was limited to investigating the response within institutional settings.
The commission was originally scheduled to hand down its final report in April 2022, but Mr Sackville said he would write to Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Friday to request an extension of the inquiry until September 2023.
If granted, the $528 million commission will run for four years and five months.
The inquiry, which was established in April 2019, has also investigated the experiences of people with disability during the coronavirus pandemic, with a report on this hearing to be released next month.
Meanwhile, the interim report was handed to the Governor-General David Hurley on Friday, with expectations it will be tabled in Parliament and made public shortly after.
The inquiry’s next public hearing is set for the week from 23 November in Brisbane, and will examine the experience of Indigenous people with disability and the impact of child protection systems.
Mr Morrison has been contacted for comment.
