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Kelly was 21 when she was elected to SA ’ s upper house , the Legislative Council , in 2010 .
The Dignity Party representative was the youngest woman ever elected to an Australian parliament and was the first Australian to be elected on the platform of disability rights . Kelly , who has cerebral palsy , said she is “ not lost ” to the community after not being re-elected at the 2018 SA election .
“ I think most people go into politics to do the right thing by the community , not for the recognition . At least as an introvert with Asperger ’ s , this is definitely true of me !” she said .
“ I think there were a number of factors against us at the election , from major party preferences to the new voting system ( SA implemented changes to its Upper House voting system at the 2018 election ), which I think is still not well understood .
“ But I think the important thing to remember is that I ’ m not lost . I miss parliament a lot , but I ’ m also enjoying exploring other ways to help the state that I ’ ve called home my whole life .”
Kelly ’ s achievements during her eight years in parliament are many and varied . Asked to name a few she is most proud of , she named work around the Disability Justice Plan , Intensive Home-Based Support Service , and centre for the treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder , among her highlights .
“ The Disability Justice Plan and associated legislation made SA a national leader when it comes to adequately supporting disabled victims , witnesses of crime , and offenders in our courts ,” she said . “ People with disability are estimated to be at least twice more likely to experience abuse than those without , and I think part of the reason is that without these supports for people to tell their story , it ’ s easier for bad people to go unpunished . It ’ s also really exciting that other states are now learning from the SA example , because of course people have a right to be safe and seek justice no matter where they are .
“ This can often lead to serious self-harm and BPD does have a very high suicide rate . It used to be widely believed that BPD was untreatable , but most clinicians now understand that is not true . But without the right therapy and supports , people with BPD often get caught in ineffective and expensive repeat hospitalisations .
“ So , with this centre , SA finally has the chance to save lives , and a lot of money in the long term .”
Similarly , she is proud of convincing the State Government to
" I miss parliament a lot , but I ’ m also enjoying exploring other ways to help the state that I ’ ve called home my whole life ."
“ There is still a long way to go around education about sex , relationships and how to identify and respond to dangerous behaviour , particularly in a way that ’ s accessible to people with intellectual disability .”
She is proud of securing multipartisan support and funding for South Australia to follow other states in having a specific centre for the treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder ( BPD ).
“ BPD is a serious but often misunderstood condition often categorised by an unstable sense of self and difficulty regulating emotions ,” she said . reinstate funding for the Intensive Home-Based Support Service , which provides in-home support to people facing a mental health crisis and has been shown to shorten hospital stays by 10 days on average .
“ The more we can keep people happy and healthy , engaged in family and work life , the more they can contribute back ,” she said .
“ There is often , if not always , significant economic gain to be made from effective social programs and I ’ m often frustrated by the assumption that it ’ s one or the other . You ’ re either a hard-nosed economist or a bleeding-heart tree hugger . linkonline . com . au people
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