The Australian Government has committed $1 billion in this year's Budget to support the first

stage of a National Disability Insurance Scheme.

From the middle of 2013, around 10,000 people with disability, their families and carers will start to benefit from the first stage of the scheme in selected sites around the country.

From the middle of 2014, the scheme will expand to cover around 20,000 people.

This means that for the first time in Australia's history people with significant and permanent disability will start to receive care and support over their lifetime, regardless of how they acquired their disability.

State and territory leaders met in Canberra today to discuss the scheme and Prime Minister Julia Gillard has announced the selection of South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT as host launch sites.

Agreement could not be reached with New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia, although the WA government has recently launched its own disability scheme for the state, known as My Way.

There has been widespread political support for the $8 billion per year scheme, but there is ongoing disagreement about how the NDIS will be funded.