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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-11-24 Daily Xml
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ASBESTOS VICTIMS MEMORIAL DAY

Ms THOMPSON (Reynell) (14:09): My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier inform the house of the ceremonies that will take place tomorrow to remember asbestos victims?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Did you hear that question, Premier?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Marshall interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, member for Norwood!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Minister for State Development) (14:10): Thank you, Madam Speaker. As the member for Reynell has reminded us, tomorrow is Asbestos Victims Memorial Day. Both here and across Australia, people will be gathering to remember the many thousands of people who have lost their lives to asbestos disease and support their families and friends. It is estimated that nearly 5,000 Australians have died from asbestos disease since we began keeping records in the 1980s and that, tragically, the number of people diagnosed with asbestos disease will rise before it will fall. We expect that around 25,000 Australians will die of mesothelioma over the next 40 years. That is immeasurable suffering and loss, caused by a failure for too long to stop a dangerous practice.

By the time asbestos was banned in building works in 1983, its dangers were well known. As early as the 1930s, scientists were warning of the dangers of asbestos dust. But these warnings went unheeded. People continued to go to mines, building sites, construction projects and rail yards to do an honest day's work, only to leave with their bodies and clothes exposed to a deadly substance.

Tomorrow, I will have the honour of attending two ceremonies to remember the victims of asbestos disease that will be held by the Asbestos Disease Society of South Australia and the Asbestos Victims Association of South Australia. Both of these fine organisations, that give wonderful support to asbestos victims and their families, were founded by men who knew firsthand of the suffering that asbestos could cause.

Jack Watkins spent his life in the construction industry not only working but also campaigning for workers' rights and, in his later years, for the clean-up of the Islington rail yards. Tomorrow morning, we will gather in the park at Kilburn that has replaced these rail yards and is named after Jack to remember him and open a walkway dedicated to all who have died from asbestos-related diseases. Again, the beautiful Pitman Park in Salisbury will join with the society founded by Colin Arthur who, when diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease, spent the last years of his life working for others so that all people struggling with the terrible effects of this disease could have the support they need.

Sadly, Colin and Jack both lost their battles, but the changes that have been made over the years to support people, to expedite legal proceedings in the Industrial Relations Court and to increase the awareness of the terrible risks, have been made in their names and the names of all who have suffered from these dreadful afflictions.

This is becoming more important as increasing numbers of people who may not recall the ban of asbestos in building works are renovating houses older than themselves. We must continue to alert people to the dangers of asbestos to prevent a rising toll of death and suffering. When we gather tomorrow, we should not only remember the victims but also remind ourselves that using asbestos can have terrible consequences.

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