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'It's Colin from Cottesloe': Former Premier breaks silence after calling radio station

Media shy former Premier Colin Barnett has broken his silence after ringing a Perth radio station to defend the state's handling of the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

Nulsen Disability Services chief executive Gordon Trewern was talking on Radio 6PR on Wednesday morning criticising the slow statewide rollout of the NDIS.

In December, the WA Liberals struck a deal with the Turnbull government to run its own model of the NDIS.

But when Mr Barnett rang Radio 6PR to say "it's Colin from Cottesloe" the producers couldn't believe their ears.

The former Premier has shunned the media since the Liberals were comprehensively smashed in the March election.

At one stage, the Cottesloe MP told reporters to "please leave me alone" when he arrived for the first official sitting of Parliament on May 15.

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"I just thought I'd make a few comments about the formation of the NDIS and references to it be rushed – I think that is true, it was," Mr Barnett said.

"Look, one of the discussions at COAG when Julia Gillard was Prime Minister and before the Council of Australians Governments meeting there is a dinner with the Prime Minister and the Premiers the night before.

"At this particular meeting the NDIS was the major issue and I guess, and I'm no expert in this area, but there were two broad ways the system had developed.

"Western Australian's, as I'm sure many of your listeners would know, has a very devolved model where around 70 per cent of state funding for disability services is delivered through not-for-profit organisations, like Nulsen and Rocky Bay all those sorts of organisations.

"And that has been modelled on what happened in Victoria - It's a good system."

Mr Barnett claimed Ms Gillard had threatened to walk away from the NDIS scheme.

"Now I don't think she really meant that and everyone said calm down," he said.

"But what struck me was the Prime Minister wasn't aware that 80 per cent of disability services were actually funded by the states.

"And I think that's the problem, the Commonwealth were seeing it as their scheme.

"It's not a black and white situation and I can understand the current Labor government saying should we just fall into the national scheme.

"I took a cautious view we should stay separate and make sure we don't disrupt services.

"Take it for what it was but it was quite a chaotic situation at time and I think decisions were being rushed."