MEDIA RELEASE

NICK XENOPHON M.L.C.

INDEPENDENT NO POKIES MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

23 September 2004

WITH 2,500 SOUTH AUSTRALIANS ALREADY MARKED TO DIE FROM ASBESTOS OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS:

MOVE FOR ASBESTOS HOTLINE TO ADVISE AND WARN – AND SAVE LIVES

 · Legislation to be introduced next month aimed at informing public and advising home owners/renovators to prevent exposure.

· James Hardie will be asked to fund the $1 million a year scheme.

· Call on Premier – as a patron of the Asbestos Victims Association – to back the legislation in Parliament.

In the wake of the damning findings of the Special Commission of Inquiry into James Hardie, South Australia could be the first place in Australia to have a dedicated Asbestos Information Hotline and Service under legislation to be introduced into State Parliament next month.

The legislation, the Asbestos (Protective Measures) Bill, is to be introduced by No Pokies MLC Nick Xenophon on October 13^th in State Parliament – who, along with Premier Mike Rann (and others) is a patron of the Asbestos Victims Association (AVA). The legislation will require the State Government to:

· set up a dedicated service to educate, advise and warn the public of the dangers of asbestos lurking in hundreds of thousands of South Australian homes.

· provide a hotline for home renovators and construction workers concerned about potential exposure to asbestos to get advice, and if necessary send out experts to visit homes and building sites – at no cost – to inspect and check for exposure.

· independently report on compliance with existing asbestos laws and regulations, and also their effectiveness in protecting public health and safety.

Extent of the problem and the risk

· Two out of three homes and other buildings in Australia contain asbestos (including most homes built pre-1983).

· As many as 53 000 people may be diagnosed with asbestos-related disease in Australia by 2020 – with 2,500 South Australians already ‘marked’ to die in the next 20 years form exposure to asbestos.

· Asbestos-related diseases, including the invariably fatal lung cancer mesothelioma, can take between  25 and 40 years to develop after exposure. South Australia has the second highest rate per capita of mesothelioma in the world.

Mr Xenophon has received the support of the AVA for the Bill as well as 36 year old Belinda Dunn – who contracted mesothelioma when exposed to asbestos as a child when her father demolished their carport.

“The Special Commission of Inquiry into James Hardie has confirmed the massive cover up and deceit – over many decades – of Australia ’s biggest peddler of asbestos products. Governments across the nation agree that James Hardie should pay up fully for victims. This proposed legislation goes a step further – it is aimed at preventing the next generation of asbestos deaths in 25 to 40 years time”.

“Setting up this hotline and service – that James Hardie should be forced to pay for – will invariably save lives and prevent South Australians needlessly being subjected to the pain and horror of asbestos related illness”.

Mr Xenophon said he was “hopeful” that Premier Rann – as a co-patron of the AVA - will support the legislation.

“Mike Rann and Michael Wright did the right thing and supported legislation I introduced in 2001 (becoming law in 2002) giving families of asbestos victims the right to compensation even after the death of their loved one. That law was aimed at ending the disgrace of ‘deathbed’ court hearings. This law is aimed at preventing exposure from occurring in the first place”.

Mr Xenophon said he is also drafting legislation to require houses sold to have an asbestos disclosure statement on contracts. This was called for last month by the AVA and the Australian Manufacturers Workers Union.