Government Budgets are more than balance sheets. They are values documents. They tell us who Government thinks matters and by how much.

In Aotearoa New Zealand, we like to think of ourselves as fair and accepting. The annual Budget is the true test of whether those values are baked into our decisions, or just political talking points spoken aloud and then set aside.

Budget Day is coming up this Thursday. For some, it may feel like just another bureaucratic ritual, but for many, including Tāngata Whaikaha Māori and all disabled people, it is personal. We will be watching to see whether this Budget improves our lives or makes them harder. We will be watching to see if any funding improvements in one area are at the expense of other important areas, like the delay in settling the support and care workers pay equity claim.

We will be asking if Budget 2025 provides for even the “basics” for disabled people. Or, will it reflect human rights-based values of what is needed for us to live a good life, with autonomy, participation and dignity? What is needed to feel trusted to have control over our lives?

The changes to Disability Support Services (DSS) funding rules provide an example of a live test of these values. DSS funding is for practical supports that should enable disabled people to live how we choose, stay connected to our communities, and shape our own lives. These are not nice-to-haves. They are essential rights.

In March 2024, those rights came under pressure. When Whaikaha Ministry of Disabled People paused key aspects of flexible, individualised funding without notice or consultation, many disabled people were suddenly cut off from support for everyday necessities. The impact was a sharp reduction in choice, trust, and autonomy.

The pause was followed by rhetoric that implied families were misusing funds for indulgent extras. The reality is many families are struggling to make sure they have the basics.

A system that limits how disabled people can organise their support is not just an administrative change: it is a shift away from dignity and autonomy.

When the Government initiated an independent review of DSS funding system, it did so with limited involvement of disabled people. Its narrow consultation questions that followed did little to build confidence in a future system that is supposed to be grounded in participation and trust.

Some countries have shown the benefits of rights-based support systems: greater autonomy, inclusion, and quality of life. In Aotearoa New Zealand, the Enabling Good Lives demonstration saw Māori participation increase by 60 percent when support was made more flexible, progress in line with rights guaranteed under Te Tiriti of Waitangi.

These outcomes are not automatic. They require systems built on trust, flexibility, and leadership by disabled people.

When disabled people are trusted to make decisions, we can participate more fully. When families, whānau and support workers are valued and paid equitably, families and communities are stronger. We all benefit from systems built on care, fairness, and freedom.

A budget that doesn’t address decades of underfunding under the guise of fiscal discipline is one that leaves people behind.

Responsible budgeting does not mean setting people in competition with one another for meagre rations. Investing in the rights of disabled people, in disability support, care equity, or inclusive systems is nation-building. Rights and equity are not frills, they are what hold our economy and communities together.

Budget 2025 must choose rights over rations. Autonomy over austerity. When we design for dignity, we all win.

If we believe in a fair Aotearoa, then we must fund it like we mean it.

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