Engineered Stone Regulations

The Hon. F. PANGALLO (15:18): I seek leave to make a briefer explanation before asking the minister for industrial affairs about engineered stone.

Leave granted.

The Hon. F. PANGALLO: Warehouse chain Bunnings and furniture retailer IKEA have announced they will phase out selling engineered stone. This follows Safe Work Australia releasing a report on engineered stone, which warned that continued work with engineered stone poses an unacceptable risk to workers and called for a total ban on its use, a call supported by unions. Engineered stone has been a popular feature in many Australian kitchens, as it is seen as being an affordable option to granite or marble. However, when cut, fine silica dust is released, which can harm the lungs when inhaled.

Federal workplace relations minister Tony Burke described the report as powerful and compelling and said state and federal governments would meet before the year's end to discuss the next steps. My questions to the minister are:

1. Does the state government plan to follow the lead set by Bunnings and IKEA and legislate to ban the use of engineered stone in the thousands of building and construction works undertaken on their behalf where the product is currently used?

2. If not, is that something the government will consider, given the known health dangers of using the material and the findings of the Safe Work Australia report?

3. Has the meeting flagged by Minister Burke been confirmed? If so, when?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (15:20): I thank the honourable member very much for his question. Earlier this year, I think it was in August, we announced further regulations into the uncontrolled dry cutting of engineered stone, in terms of making sure that there are guidelines and sanctions in place for breaching those guidelines in terms of people who work with this product.

Those regulations came into force in the last month or so. I remember that at the time of releasing those regulations the South Australian government talked about the fact that there was national work underway, and since those regulations have been released and come into force Safe Work Australia's report has been released. It talks about the use of engineered stone and concludes that there is not a safe limit of what makes up engineered stone that justifies continuing to use it.

As the honourable member has outlined, Bunnings have announced that they will stop selling engineered stone. I think that, in the last day or two, IKEA have followed that announcement as well. I have seen reports that the Australian Medical Association has come in to support what the Safe Work Australia report has said.

I think it is sometime around mid-December that they are looking for a meeting, certainly before the end of this year, of all work health and safety ministers from the states and territories, including the federal government. That will be to look at what I think is a preferable outcome, that is, a consistent federal action, which would be by far the most effective, given that it is the federal government that have the ability in terms of importation restrictions on any products coming into Australia.

At the time, we put those extra regulations in place regarding the use of engineered stone. I made the comment that we look forward to having an outcome federally by the end of this year, but as a state we reserve the right go it alone if we are not happy with what happens federally. So it is something that we are absolutely well aware of. It is something that we have been consistently vocal on, and I look forward to that meeting sometime in the next month with all my colleagues from around Australia.

As I say, I think it's preferable to have a federal position that is applied in all states and territories in this country in relation to engineered stone. I say that, given we know the effects that asbestos has had on people and on families. In knowing the effects of dust diseases from engineered stone, we need to take action and that is why we have made those strong statements as a state. I look forward to that federal meeting coming to some sort of resolution.