Page 563 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 5 March 2008
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
disease and injury. The ACT Asbestos Assessment Task Force was established in 2004 under the Dangerous Substances Act. The task force’s main objective was to analyse the extent and impact of asbestos in the ACT and report back to the industrial relations minister. The ACT government agreed in principle to all of the recommendations of the task force report and has since implemented a new framework for managing asbestos in the ACT. Awareness campaigns featuring prominent TV personality Don Burke are being run and Canberrans have been provided with information about safe asbestos removal and disposal and their legal responsibilities.
In 2007 new laws were introduced for non-residential buildings. The laws affect anyone who owns a building or who makes decisions about its management. The first deadline for compliance is September this year. The new laws will require owners to obtain a report from a licensed asbestos assessor identifying the location and condition of any asbestos in the building and then prepare and pull into action a written asbestos management plan. This must include an asbestos register that can be made available to tenants, workers, contractors and any other relevant people. It also needs to include an action timetable for the control measures and a procedure for review. The review must take place at least every five years. These new laws will alert any relevant person associated with the premises if asbestos is present and where it is located.
Most of us in here know—we have talked about it before—that when asbestos is contained in a bonded form, maintained in good condition and left alone it presents no health risks. But when the asbestos fibres are released into the air and breathed in, we know that there can be serious, if not fatal, health implications. That is why it is so important that anyone working on a premises, or long-term occupants and tenants, are aware of or appropriately qualified to handle asbestos. By taking the right precautions, the generation and inhalation of dust during activities that may disturb materials containing asbestos will be reduced.
The government is committed to minimising the prevalence of asbestos related diseases in the future. We will continue to carry on Bernie Banton’s legacy. Mr Banton never stopped fighting for fair and just compensation. Just days before his death, he won a confidential payout as compensation for his terminal mesothelioma. Mr Banton’s lawyer, Tanya Segelov, said that the case was a first for the $4 billion James Hardie compensation fund. Mr Banton was simply selfless in his fight for justice for all asbestos victims, not just for himself but for the families of many of his workmates who had died from asbestos related disease without compensation.
Those of us who were in this place before the 2004 election will remember that when we were debating the legislation to do with asbestos Mr Banton came down and sat in the gallery. I remember him sitting in the gallery with his wife. I know that a former member in this place, Mrs Cross, was involved in asking him to come down, but I also mention Elizabeth Thurbon, who raised the issue with a number of members in this place, and, I think, Carol Willie—I am getting a nod from Roland—who would have dealt with her as well. That is my recollection, and I would like to put them on the record as having been involved.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .