Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I said the last time we spoke on the Customs Amendment (Expedited Seizure and Disposal of Engineered Stone) Bill 2024, Joanna told me how she was going through her problems and what it meant for her and her daughter's future. She contracted silicosis while working in a quarry in Montrose, where she worked in admin and did some of the more hands-on work. She said:

No matter where you were in the plant you would be exposed to dust. It would be all over your clothes and skin.

There was no escaping it. There was no protection for the workers who were doing an honest day's work for an honest day's pay. She talked about how there was no information about the danger from her employer. Despite it being a multinational company, there was no education and no warning about the risk. Understandably, she talked about her anger when she said:

I fear this will affect my life and my family's life and I am angry. I should never have been exposed to this disease.

Since then, I have been on the tail of this, writing to ministers, lobbying, working in the government for reform. I'm pleased to report that this government has not rested in our attempts to protect Australian workers and to make sure no worker is subject to the long and agonising deaths that are linked to silicosis and silica related diseases. With cooperation with states and territories, we have implemented a world-first prohibition on use, manufacture, supply, processing and installation of engineered stone benchtops, panels and slabs that cause these diseases. And this legislation does prevent greedy businesses from putting their workers at risk and into vulnerable positions to suffer the consequences of this disease, closing loopholes that put Australians at risk by prohibiting illegal importation.

The ban complements the government's work on Australia's domestic ban under the WHS laws, because now all engineered stone in Australia is manufactured overseas and imported. That's why the Albanese government is acting decisively to add more layers of deterrence at the border, giving Border Force more mechanisms to prevent this silent killer from slipping through the cracks and doing irreversible damage to people.

Regulation to enact the import prohibition is currently under development. To ensure the effectiveness of these measures, the Australian government has committed $32.1 million of funding over two years, as highlighted in the 2024-25 budget. The Customs Amendment (Expedited Seizure and Disposal of Engineered Stone) Bill 2024 is a key component required to support the proposed prohibition. The amendments in this bill would support ABF's operational effectiveness by allowing ABF officers to more efficiently administer and dispose of seized engineered stone at the border. It's building on previous policies that the Albanese Labor government has implemented to protect Australian workers, like the National Occupational Respiratory Disease Registry Bill, because only a Labor government will stand up and fight for workers. Labor's commitment to ongoing industrial reform continues to be at the forefront of our agenda—something the coalition fight at every single turn. While they say they're for the Australian worker, they're really for their mates who supply the private jets and the fat wallets.

This change is needed not only to protect Australian workers but also to make sure our Border Force and Customs have mechanisms and processes that deal with the product that will not compromise their ability to effectively manage other priorities at our border. It's important because it's a bulk good, and the government recognises the practical challenges of management of seized engineered stone products.

This amendment seeks to combat the importation of engineered stone. This will cause an increase in the volume of seized goods required to be stored and associated work and will affect ABF's capacity to effectively regulate and administer other operations. The legislation streamlines the logistic and administrative tasks related to managing seizures for the intended new engineered-stone prohibition. It will allow for more-efficient compliance processes.

Another important factor about this legislation is that, while it will have exponential effects on health and safety conditions for workers, it is only importers who are still attempting to import engineered stone containing the crystalline silica and have the prohibited goods seized who will be affected this change. And I'd like to remind the House that this amendment we are debating today is just one of the steps we've taken to address this.

On 1 July 2024 we joined with states and territories to implement the world's first prohibition of the use, manufacture, supply, processing and installation of these engineered-stone benchtops, panels and slabs in Australia. These are all steps taken by our government to reduce the rate of silicosis and related diseases, because without the measures that our government introduced, the rates of silicosis and other respiratory diseases are unacceptably high. Back in 2023 an ABC report showed that, despite increased awareness, many Australians are still missing out on the diagnosis. The dust-borne diseases are preventable, yet it was shown that bosses, bad workplace practices and a lack of oversight were putting workers at risk.

Too many young Australian workers are diagnosed with this preventable illness, and they are suffering an entirely preventable death. Dust-borne diseases impact workers from a wide range of industries: construction, manufacturing, tunnelling, mining and quarrying. Sadly, we know that the numbers will rise, given workers' exposure to a very high level of crystalline silica in the engineered-stone industry since the early 2000s. Medical experts warned that the time it takes from exposure to the time of diagnosis means the number of cases will likely increase over the next few years.

Work is already being undertaken by Safe Work Australia to address silicosis. Jurisdictions have also taken immediate steps to address the increase in silicosis, including through legislative changes, development of codes of practice, education, awareness campaigns and compliance awards, and the establishment of a collaborative mechanism such as the heads of WorkSafe's working group on silicosis. This is all good work, but we need to maintain the momentum and ensure the safety of workers.

With all that said, let's go back to the basics of what we're talking about here. Silicosis is a lung disease mainly caused by inhaling silica, a mineral commonly found in certain rocks and soil. Silica dust is created when cutting, drilling, grinding or polishing certain types of stone, rock, sand and clay. Over time, inhaling silica dust causes inflammation, which leads to scarring of the lung tissue, which then causes stiffening of the lungs, making it difficult to breathe. Silica dust particles are 100 times smaller than a grain of sand—so small you can't see them with the naked eye. If inhaled, these particles become trapped and will cause irritation throughout the lungs, causing an irritation that the immune system cells will try to attack. The attack will be unsuccessful and cause the immune system cells to die, which then causes inflammation and scar tissue in the lungs. The development of scar tissue inhibits a person's ability to breathe, showing the signs of silicosis and, in severe cases, autoimmune disease. It's pretty clear why we need to be proactive in responding to this disease, because of the devastating and debilitating effects on workers.

A Curtin University study shows that between 80,000 and 100,000 people may have silicosis. The Cancer Council estimates that roughly 600,000 workers have the potential for exposure each year across a wide range of industries, whether it's cutting marble for fancy benchtops or from the dust from the rocks cut in mines. Silicosis is not often diagnosed until it's in its advanced stages. Approximately 350 Australians contract silicosis each year. But, of that, around 230 people are diagnosed with the advanced prognosis. The ABC report I mentioned earlier noted that a surveillance program in New South Wales missed over 200 workers. These statistics are emblematic of why the Australian government needs to continue to be proactive in preventing engineered stone coming to our country and putting workers at risk.

It's only a Labor government that will stand up for workers. It is in stark contrast to the opposition, with a leader that consistently votes against criminalising wage theft, promises free lunch to businesses and swans around on private jets funded by the richest CEOs. It shows that the coalition simply don't understand working Australians and the challenges they face. Here, our government, the Albanese Labor government, is building Australia's future. It shows that we see the issues and that we care about protecting workers.

I want to commend Liam O'Brien from the ACTU for taking the time to bring people out to meet me and to tell their stories—to hear their stories and hear firsthand what it means to suffer from something that you had no idea was in the air. It's through that work of the unions, through the ACTU, that stand up and say, 'We've got to get this fixed.' They came to us, they spoke to us and we immediately swung into action to get things done, because this government believes that, when you go to work in the morning, you should go to a safe workplace and you should be able to come back home safe. With that, I commend this bill to the House.

Adam Bandt (Melbourne, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of this important bill, the Customs Amendment (Expedited Seizure and Disposal of Engineered Stone) Bill 2024. We're placing a few brief remarks on the record here. Senator David Shoebridge, who has been pursuing this issue for a number of years, will speak to it at more length when the matter goes to the Senate.

No-one should have to die for a shiny benchtop. Yet, for years, manufactured stone has been silently killing young workers around the country. This deadly material is the asbestos of our time, causing incurable silicosis and destroying lives. That's why the Greens strongly welcome decisive action to ban it. For years we have backed the call from construction unions and other unions for a ban.

We've seen firsthand the devastating toll—workers suffering slow, painful deaths and families left shattered. We've heard their pleas for action and we've fought alongside them. Greens senator David Shoebridge has been leading this fight since 2019. He was a driving force behind the New South Wales parliament review in 2020 and in a dissenting statement called for an urgent ban. As he said:

Every month and year we delay, more workers will be exposed to the risk of deadly silicosis. No shiny benchtop is worth that.

For too long manufacturers and developers have resisted a ban, insisting that site-specific controls were enough—just as James Hardie once did. We know from bitter experience and lives lost that these controls fail to protect workers. The only responsible solution is a total ban, yet as recently as mid-2023 SafeWork was still claiming high-silica manufactured stone could be used safely. The cost of that delay has been paid for in lives. It's time to act, because no benchtop is worth a worker's life. We strongly support the bill today.

The bill amends the Customs Act to support the ban on the importation of manufactured stone, being an artificial product, that contains one per cent or more crystalline silica. It strengthens seizure and disposal powers to help the Australian Border Force manage manufactured and engineered stone goods at the border. Currently the act requires these prohibited imports to be stored for at least 30 days before disposal. This bill will empower the Comptroller-General of Customs to cause engineered stone products seized as prohibited imports on and from 1 January 2025 to be dealt with as they determine appropriate, including permitting immediate destruction. This will mean engineered stone benchtops, panels and slabs will only be able to be imported into Australia with a valid import permit or an applicable exemption. Similar provisions exist in laws for vapes, illegal tobacco and other banned products. Given the high volume of such products, retaining this storage requirement will significantly increase workload, complicate storage and transport, and hinder both the import ban and other border operations.

Finally, it's critical to note that a ban needs to be just the start. We know that the young tradies who have been working with manufactured stone and get sick need quality medical support and will likely require compensation. Within Australia, we face the impossible situation that manufacturers of this product weren't able to get insurance, meaning that workers risk being stranded without compensation for the deadly disease that they are experiencing. Of course, the parallels in this country with the history of asbestos are clear, but in many ways the risks are greater from manufactured stone at the moment than they were with James Hardie because manufactured-stone producers have no production facilities or other assets in Australia to meet the claims in the absence of insurance. This means that whenever Caesarstone think it's no longer profitable to be involved in the Australian market they can cease operating, and given the lack of insurance there will be zero assets from which fabricators, tradies or home renovators with silicosis can recover damages. This needs to be avoided.

To conclude, our Greens senator David Shoebridge has been calling for a ban on the use of manufactured stone, because of the risks, since 2020. As I said, he was a driving force behind the New South Wales parliament review of the product, and his dissenting statement called for an urgent banning of the product. To repeat his words:

Every month and year we delay, more workers will be exposed to the risk of deadly silicosis. No shiny benchtop is worth that.

We support this legislation.

Gordon Reid (Robertson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Australian government is committed to protecting Australian workers from harm associated with silicosis and silica-related diseases. On 1 July 2024, the government joined with states and territories to implement a world-first prohibition on the use, manufacture, supply, processing and installation of engineered stone benchtops, panels and slabs within Australia. The measure is supported and strengthened by the prohibition on the importation of engineered stone, and that was implemented on 1 January 2025. The Customs Amendment (Expedited Seizure and Disposal of Engineered Stone) Bill 2024 will amend the Customs Act 1901. The amendments in this bill are essential to supporting the effective operation of the import prohibition by enhancing existing seizure and disposal powers under the Customs Act.

I want to talk a little about the disease of silicosis because silicosis changes the lives of not only the patient but also the family, friends and the clinicians that support, treat and care for them into the future. We know that silicosis is actually a spectrum of pulmonary disease. It's caused by the inhalation of free crystalline silica, or silica dioxide. There's actually written evidence of silicon related occupational lung disease dating back to ancient Egypt and ancient Greece. There's been documented evidence and information relating to this disease for quite some time.

The clinical presentations of silicosis, the diagnostic work-up, the evaluation and the pulmonary disability that occurs with silicosis actually has quite the spectrum. You've got acute silicosis on one end, which is that hyperrealisation of symptoms, including dyspnoea—shortness of breath, particularly at rest. You could have pleuritic pain—pain around the chest and lungs. You can have haemoptysis—the coughing up of blood—as well as fevers and the like. All of those can range from acute to chronic silicosis, and it can actually occur from hours to days after exposure to silica, as well as up to multiple decades after exposure. You might be exposed to it at one point and then you won't know, or you won't present to the doctor, until many years later, which is what makes this such a dangerous thing in our society. Those in the occupations who are on-site with the tradies won't necessarily know that they've become unwell. It's not until they present late at night coughing up blood with chest pain, or they go to their GP because they've got this intractable fatigue that they just can't get rid of, or weight loss, that they are diagnosed. It really, really is a dangerous pathology. This customs amendment goes to the heart of it. The more that we can control this issue and stop it from hitting our society, the better and healthier we will all be.

I've gone through the spectrum of what silicosis is—the acute, the chronic and the like—but there are other complications that can actually be associated with silicosis, along with the other pneumoconioses too, which are the other occupational lung diseases. In particular, with silicosis you've got an increased risk of things like microbacterial infection, chronic necrotising aspergillosis, lung cancer, rheumatic disorders, kidney disease, chronic airflow obstruction and chronic bronchitis. Going through some of these things, there's not only a cost to the patient but also a cost to the healthcare system. When someone develops pulmonary renal syndrome, where the lungs are failing because of silicosis, and then the kidneys begin failing—is that person then going to end up on dialysis? Is that person going to need renal replacement therapy? That's a huge medical intervention that people require. That involves staffing, dialysis machines and access to tertiary medical services in some instances. That can have a huge impact on our country and our society.

Then there is chronic airflow obstruction and chronic bronchitis. We hear these terms thrown around when we talk about pulmonary diseases in the community, but, looking at what some of these things mean—chronic airflow obstruction and chronic bronchitis—we're talking about an inflammation of our airwaves. Eventually the end stage of this disease, if it either is untreated or cannot be treated, is essentially suffocation. You stop taking in air. You stop changing over that carbon dioxide to the oxygen that you need in your cells to live, and, at the end of the day, you will eventually suffocate to death.

Making sure that we control this silica and that we rid it from our society is so important because people have died from this. No doubt people will die from this in the future, which is an absolute tragedy. But we need to prevent it. That's what Labor governments do. We do this sort of reform. It doesn't matter whether it's here with silicosis and silica or when we look at things like asbestos; bulk-billing, universal health care and access to those health services that every Australian requires—it's really only this side of the House that has the wherewithal and the gumption to get that done. There are two outstanding health professionals and parliamentarians that are sitting here in the chamber now: Assistant Minister Kearney and the member for Macarthur, Dr Mike Freelander. They've always been champions of our universal health system and making sure that patients can get access to the treatment that they deserve. It's absolutely outstanding.

But there's another thing that I wanted to run through with silicosis, and that's the link of chronic silica exposure to other diseases, which is a bit of a lesser-known aspect. Some links are stronger than others, but it is important, I think, to bring up. An example is rheumatic heart disease. We know that silicosis as a condition is associated with the production of autoantibodies, such as antinuclear antibodies and rheumatoid factor, which is interesting. You normally associate those types of autoantibodies, those circulating chemicals in the blood, with autoimmune diseases—things like lupus, discoid lupus, systemic lupus, erythematosus and other autoimmune diseases—but you wouldn't necessarily associate them with silica exposure. That's an area that absolutely needs a lot more research, but it's an interesting link to consider.

I spoke about chronic kidney disease before. With silica exposure, that airflow limitation can contribute to chronic bronchitis as well, and also to early lung malignancy and lung cancer. They're just some other conditions that have been associated with chronic silica exposure.

Outside of those health related changes that are absolutely essential and need to be made in order to prevent silica exposure, why else is this change needed? As engineered stone products are a bulk good, management of seized engineered stone products at the border poses significant challenges in terms of storage, transport, disposal and administration. Managing engineered stone as a prohibited import without this amendment may result in a significant increase in the volume of seized goods that are required to be stored and an increase in associated work at the border. That will impact the Australian Border Force's capacity to effectively regulate and administer other border operations and protect Australians, at the end of the day.

Streamlining the logistics and administrative tasks related to managing seizures for the intended new engineered stone prohibition will allow for a more efficient compliance process, resulting in the Australian Border Force having an increased ability to allocate resources across those priority areas. This isn't just another example of the Australian Labor Party strengthening health care and strengthening the rights of workers; this is also making sure that we're streamlining our administrative processes to make it easier for our Public Service to operate and make our community safer for all Australians.

Another question that gets asked is, 'Can engineered stone still be imported?' The import ban is intended to complement the domestic ban under the WHS laws, as I said before. Almost all engineered stone in Australia is manufactured overseas and imported. The import ban will provide an additional layer of deterrence at the border. Regulations to enact the import prohibition are currently under development, with funding of $32.1 million over two years provided in the 2024-25 budget for the ABF to enforce the intended import prohibition.

We've gone through what silicosis is, how it's caused and what this bill means, but, again, as I was saying, it strengthens the health care of Australians and it goes to the heart of what this side of the House is all about—that is, ensuring that the health care of all Australians is accessible, affordable and equitable. I've spoken today in a private member's motion about strengthening Medicare and the tripling of the bulk billing incentive. In Robertson, we've seen tens of thousands of people able to access a bulk billed GP for the first time in years. We saw the opposition today in question time spruiking numbers of falling bulk billing rates, which was absolute rubbish. We know that bulk billing rates are on the rise—they are in Robertson, and they are in other parts of the country. This is in association with our cheaper medicines legislation, making sure that people can access PBS medications when they need it and where they need it—

Thank you, member for Macarthur! That's whether they are blood thinners or diabetic medications, or whether they're inhalers. These medications are important not only to sustain life but also to ensure that there are no other exacerbations of these chronic illnesses so that patients don't end up in the emergency department.

There was also the announcement that was made recently regarding women's health—an absolutely outstanding announcement, a tremendous announcement, from the assistant minister and from the minister for health, looking at ensuring women's access to contraceptive devices and pharmaceuticals, and to clinics that can help diagnose, evaluate and then go on to treat things like endometriosis and chronic pain. And also, as to contraceptive access, I think it is absolutely outstanding and really should be commended, because, at the end of the day, whether you work in health care or whether you have the honour to serve in this chamber here, the idea is that you want equitable access for all Australians, and that's exactly what this does.

It is absolutely fantastic that, later next week, in my electorate of Robertson, we'll be holding a women's health forum—the second Central Coast Women's Health Forum, in fact. It'll be at the Impact gym at Erina, starting at 5.30; RSVP through my office.

The first women's health forum gave women on the Central Coast a place where they could talk openly and safely about the issues that are affecting them, particularly with access to health care. That's what this second forum is about. It's about ensuring that I, alongside the assistant minister, can provide information on what the government is doing with regard to women's health care. It's also about making sure that women on the Central Coast can have their say about what they would like to see, whether that's access to primary care, access to pharmaceuticals or access to the new schemes for our pharmacies as to the treatment of UTIs and the provision of oral contraception.

I think that that expanded scope of practice and making sure that all of our clinicians across Australia are working at the top of their scope is absolutely paramount, because that way Australians will be getting the care they need when they need it. The forum will be a great chance for people to have their say about that and really nail down those details to what that means every day. It means that you won't have to go to the doctor as frequently. I guarantee you: our GPs in the community will not be short of work! Patients will be able to go to the pharmacy and get the treatment they need, or go to the GP and get the treatment they need, or, if they are really unwell, come and see me at the hospital in the middle of night. You'll be able to get the care that you need when you need it.

Really, it is only the Australian Labor Party, under the Albanese Labor government, with a terrific team of ministers and assistant ministers, and the great caucus that we are, that has made this possible, because, without the election of the Labor government in 2022, none of this would have happened. I guarantee you: bulk-billing would have been abolished. There would have been an ED entry fee. There would have been a GP tax that would have been introduced. We'd be paying—

A government member interjecting

That's exactly right; we'd be paying more for medications. As we know, the Leader of the Opposition was voted the worst health minister by Australian doctors, and he ripped tens of billions from our public health system. And that has repercussions. That has effects and flow-on effects over years. That means underresourced hospitals; that means understaffed hospitals—all because the Leader of the Opposition didn't have the gumption and the commitment to serve the Australian people and ensure the health care of every Australian citizen right across this country.

Mike Freelander (Macarthur, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I will be on task shortly, but just let me reinforce what the member for Robertson has just said. Health care is in the DNA of the Australian Labor Party. We recognise that healthy people are productive people. We recognise that there is an equity issue about health care. And Australia has led the world in equitable access to healthcare. We've heard about the Leader of the Opposition and what he did to health care. Basically, he wanted to destroy bulk-billing, to destroy people's ability to equitably access health care and to make sure that only the wealthy could afford equitable access to health care in Australia. It is not just the Leader of the Opposition; don't forget what Jeff Kennett did to the Victorian health system decades ago—an absolute tragedy. Unfortunately we now have the Liberal Party in a similar position; they want to cut health care. It really concerns me that we still have no health policy coming from the Leader of the Opposition or his health spokesperson. They've agreed to follow our women's healthcare plan but only after much prodding. There is nothing coming forward initiating healthcare policy. It is very poor.

Going back to this bill, this is a very important bill. First of all, let me congratulate the government on banning the use of engineered stone in Australia. That was a really important change. It's something that was long overdue. Our government did that very quickly to make sure that Australian workers go home healthy every day—yet another thing we've done to promote equitable access to health care, and that's on an occupational basis. This bill is a follow-on from that to prevent the importation of engineered stone where it could have been used without any oversight. This is a very important follow-on from that initial banning of the use of engineered stone.

If I can take a step back, I'll tell you my experience as a young resident. We used to go into the respiratory wards, when I did a respiratory term, and we'd see people who were pretty fit, middle-aged men. These were people that were used to manual labour either as coalminers or as industrial workers. They were fit, very strong men, and they were basically suffocating from an entirely preventable lung disease. Silicosis is preventable, yet we were seeing numbers of previously healthy, strong men dying from this disease—and it's a slow death. It's not a good death, if any death is good; it's a slow, suffocating death—with them often carrying around their oxygen cylinders—from a preventable cause.

Australia led the world in the prevention of silicosis and related diseases in coalminers and industrial workers. We had the Dust Diseases Board, which was important, to make sure that workers were protected from developing coalminers' lung or silicosis and other complications of lung disease like asbestos and mesothelioma. Initially the major concern was asbestos but it was recognised that silicosis could develop in many different coalmines and others from the unregulated inhalation of silica dust—sometimes with coal dust but sometimes with asbestos as well.

The Dust Diseases Board was a huge innovation, and my cousin, Julian Lee, a respiratory physician at the Woolcock Institute at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, was one of the leading physicians on the Dust Diseases Board. He always felt that governments had been very late in introducing regulations to prevent the development of this terrible lung disease—not just asbestosis but silicosis. There were large numbers of people in the coalmining industry and other mining industries and the tunnelling industry—and in industrial uses and, more lately, in the use of stone for benchtops et cetera—that had been exposed to silica dust.

I remember meeting in my office a couple of years ago a well-known rugby league football player and industrial worker, Ray, who developed silicosis. He was a big, strong, muscular guy but breathing in grunting respirations—that's how they breathe.

They breathe to try and keep their little air sacs open so they can get oxygen that they need into their lungs, and it's really terrifying to see these previously fit and healthy strong men basically suffocating in front of your eyes. I believe that subsequently he has gone on to now needing home oxygen, a really terrible end result from what was an entirely preventable disease. The silicosis occurs because the silica dust you can't see and you can't feel, so people without knowledge are inhaling it into their lungs. These tiny little silica particles are gobbled up by the little protective cells we all have in our lungs called macrophages, but once they enter those macrophages the silica itself sets up an inflammatory process. That inflammatory process then leads to the immune system attacking it, causing scarring. What happens is that scarring gradually shrinks the elastic ability of the little lung tissues to open up with every breath and get that oxygen out of the air we breathe, and gradually the lungs get stiffer and stiffer, the little air sacs get destroyed and people find it more and more difficult to breathe. They help themselves by giving themselves end-airway pressure by the grunting respirations that keep the air sacs open, but unfortunately, people can develop this without recognising it, because our lungs have an ability to compensate.

They can often at presentation already have untreatable chronic lung disease, and there are no really effective treatments other than supportive treatments. Use of steroids or use of drugs, such as those used in asthma, to open up the airways have a very limited effect, and very quickly people with silicosis become oxygen dependent. You can see them. They're otherwise healthy looking blokes, grunting respiration, walking around with tubes in their nose delivering the oxygen they often carry in a backpack or a trolley to help them move around. Eventually they will die of respiratory failure if they don't get a heart and lung transplant. Even with that, results can be difficult because, as we've already heard, the complications of silicosis include things like heart disease and autoimmune disease because the inflammatory process releases proteins into the blood that cause your body's own immune system to attack other organs, so people can have renal kidney failure and they can have other autoimmune disorders. It is a tragic complication of the disease of silicosis that not just the lungs are affected, and people die when they really should have many more years to live.

The Labor Party believes people should have the opportunity of going to work and coming home healthy, hence our moves initially to ban the importation of engineered stone and now to seize engineered stone at the border and to dispose of it quickly without it getting into the system, where it could be used dishonestly otherwise. This legislation is very important, but it's also a continuum of Labor looking after people and looking after workers in particular. As a physician, these are dreadful diseases that could have been prevented. We're still seeing people in this day and age suffering from silicosis, and that just should not be happening. Engineered stone is a particular danger because of the very high concentrations of silica in engineered stone, sometimes up to 80 per cent, whereas natural stone, even though it's not without risk, has usually 20 per cent or lower silica. It's very important that we don't use engineered stone. Unfortunately, as my cousin Julian Lee thought about asbestos diseases and coalminer's lung and silicosis, we are late in doing it. It should have been done years ago. We're very lucky that we've got a Labor government who's prepared to act on this quite dreadful disease and make sure that workers go to work and come home healthy.

We've prohibited other imports before—vapes being one of them. That's a particular interest of mine. We should've banned the importation of vapes years and years ago. We've had to introduce legislation to prevent the use and importation of vapes, and we're now doing the same thing with engineered stone, which is very important. It's part of a suite of public health measures that Labor is committed to. This Customs Amendment (Expedited Seizure and Disposal of Engineered Stone) Bill is a really key component of that.

It's important that we have this bill because other seized products have to be kept and stored for a while as the legal process needs to happen so they can be destroyed. But engineered stone is very heavy. It's difficult to store; it's difficult to manage. This bill now gives the government and the authorities the ability to immediately remove any possibility of the engineered stone getting to market. Immediate destruction is the best answer for this, and this bill ensures that this will happen. It's yet another public health measure, as I've said, that prevents workers from becoming unwell and makes sure that they can go home safely every day.

Some people have previously suggested that more needs to be done to educate workers about the dangers of engineered stone and that more needs to be done to make sure that workers wear masks and gloves et cetera. But, in a workplace that may only be small or is isolated, it's very difficult to make sure that 100 per cent of the safety measures are undertaken, and so the best result is going to be what has happened—that is, the banning of the use of engineered stone altogether and the destruction of any engineered stone that gets to Australia. It means that we are able to destroy it immediately before any possibility of use, legal or otherwise, and that it can be destroyed very quickly.

I commend this bill to the House. There is, of course, more to be done. We certainly need to be doing more in terms of educating miners and workers about the dangers of inhaling particles, not just silica but also particles from other forms of mining. We've done our very best to make sure people are protected from the dangers of asbestos disease, but it's important to note that we still have quite a significant amount of asbestos in our housing stock. People need to be made aware of the dangers of asbestosis and inhalation of asbestos, not just in our working community but for homeowners, and Labor is committed to doing that. This needs to be done together with people who are involved in the tunnelling industry, as my eldest son is. There are dangers such as dust inhalation in tunnelling situations, particularly if attention to protective equipment is not followed.

So there's much more to be done for public health measures. This bill and the one previously that banned the use of engineered stone are fantastic protections for Australian workers. Only Labor has been able to do this. The previous government ignored the problem, and it's very important that our good work in public health continues.

Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise as well to speak in favour of the bill that's before us, the Customs Amendment (Expedited Seizure and Disposal of Engineered Stone) Bill 2024. I note that I rise to speak after two members whose careers before entering this place, which continue whilst they're here, are in the health profession. They, like the entire health community, know of the dangers of silicosis and silica related diseases that are the result of workers and homeowners who might be working with engineered stone.

When our state governments around Australia came together in this place to ban engineered stone, the recognition was that we did not want engineered stone to become the new asbestos. I would say that, in a very real way, the medical profession, the unions, the experts, were not listened to when it came to asbestos. After a very long community campaign, eventually we did ban asbestos in this country, and we are working now and living with the legacy of that ban.

Over a third of Australian homes have asbestos in them, and the rate of death in relation to asbestosis and asbestos related diseases continues to be above 6,000 a year—too many for a product that people put into their homes during a particular period. It is a legacy that we continue to live with, and it is expected that death rate will increase, unfortunately, because we still have so much asbestos in our built community. Our government, like previous governments, is working with the states and territories on how best to remove it, when to remove it—whether it be heat maps, whether it be working with the real estate agents or with the building industry—to make sure it is removed safely and as effectively as possible. Public buildings, schools, hospitals, homes—you name it—asbestos is almost everywhere. As I said, it is in a third of homes.

When the issues first started to arise in relation to engineered stone, the medical profession, the experts within those fields of research, the union movement, did not wait to say, 'Look, we might need to address this.' It soon became a campaign to ban engineered stone. I was very pleased to be in a government that worked with states and territories to introduce that ban.

The Australian government has committed to protecting Australian workers from the harm associated with silicosis and silica related disease, and that's why, as I said, on 1 July 2020, the government joined with states and territories to implement world's first ban on the use, manufacture, supply, processing and installation of engineered stone benchtop panels and slabs in Australia. We didn't say, 'Let's drill it with water,' or try a separate way. The research was in; the evidence was in; we needed to go for a straight ban. This measure that we have before us now supports and strengthens that prohibition and that ban on importing engineered stone that was implemented on 1 January 2025. What this bill does is amend the act to say that where Border Force and officials come across the stone, it can be seized and destroyed immediately. Similar provisions already exists for other prohibited imports such as tobacco, vapes, dangerous perishable goods and illicit drugs. It is the easiest way to dispose of this product.

It is important to note that engineered stone, because it is used in benchtops and in home building, it is a big bulky product, so by destroying it straightaway, it does not take up space. There is no room for appeals, denials, negotiations. It is imported, it is discovered, it is confiscated, it is seized and it is destroyed. It adds an extra layer of deterrence to those who might try and sneak the product in.

As we know with the asbestos example, it doesn't stop countries or importers from trying to sneak it in. I've lost count of the number of times that our Border Force officials have found asbestos in products being imported into Australia. Whether it is deliberate or unintentional, asbestos is still finding its way into our country, and Border Force officials are working really hard to stop that from happening. It has been found in car tyres, children's crayons and building materials where things have been labelled wrongly. So this bill before us says that, in cases where it is discovered, it will be destroyed immediately. It is important that we have these protections in place to ensure that this dangerous stone is destroyed.

Managing engineered stone as a prohibited import without this amendment would result in a significant increase of these goods having to be stored and also an increase in the associated work that Border Force would have to do to regulate and administrate the management of it after being seized when those resources could be used elsewhere. Who is most affected by this change? Only the importers that are still attempting to bring in engineered stone when they are not supposed to.

Previous speakers have spoken about the nature of this product. Talking to builders and workers in my electorate and to people associated with the building trade, it is essentially a bunch of crap. It's a whole bunch of things slapped together in a slab, sold as fake marble, trying to convince homeowners they can still have a marble finish but with a product that is not marble. It is used in homes to sell a finish that it is not. What we know from the workers, their unions and health professionals is that the cutting of this stone and the concentration of silica and silica dust coming from this stone is what is creating a high level of disease amongst their workforce.

The ban means engineered stone cannot be imported whatsoever. Almost all engineered stone in Australia is manufactured overseas and imported. An import ban provides an additional layer of deterrence at the border, stopping this stone from coming in. I should also say that this is a relatively new product, so it is not like asbestos, where we had decades and generations of legacy product in our built environment. It's a relatively new product, so it means that the number of homes and buildings with this product is a lot smaller than the challenge that we face with asbestos. But that stage of the campaign will come next. How do we then make sure that we are tracking where the stone is so that people who may have purchased a home with it know that if they want to do any work on that home they have to handle that stone product with care. If it is in a benchtop, you are not going to have as much interaction with it as, say, a wall you might be sanding to repaint where you have asbestos. The risk is reduced because it's in the home and it has one purpose. However, it is important that people know, if they have purchased a home with this fake marble, this engineered stone, how best to manage it.

Why is the ban necessary? I've touched on this briefly, but I want to end on this point. It is because workers were dying. We all remember the heartbreaking stories in our media of young families being ripped apart as workers and their families were receiving this diagnosis of silicosis. Exposure to silica dust is a health hazard for workers who manufacture, finish and install natural and engineered stone countertop products. But what we know is that engineered stone has a higher risk of exposure because of the nature of the product. In some states reports have shown that one in four stonemasons who've work with engineered stone are being diagnosed with silicosis. It is unacceptable. That's why we had to bring this ban in, and that's why we are now amending it to see that the stone destroyed as soon as it's discovered. Scientific and medical evidence has found that even when workers cut and fabricate low-silica stone product it generates significant amounts of very fine particles of silica that can then penetrate deep into the lungs, causing the disease, as my colleague pointed out.

At the time of the ban there was overwhelming relief and support from many in the medical profession and the research profession, as well as the union movement. At the time, the ACTU assistant secretary, Liam O'Brien, said that a total ban would 'save lives'. He said, 'We thank the ministers for putting workers' lives ahead of corporate profits.' Another said that engineered stone was a fashion product that was killing workers who made it. And that's the point: it was a fashion product; it was a building choice. There are other choices that we can make for our benchtops in our homes, in our units, in our workplaces. Alternatives are readily available, and we should be choosing those ahead of a product that we know puts tradies' lives at risk for fashion in our kitchens.

We also know from the research—and this is one of the key reasons we pushed for this ban—that there is no such thing as safe engineered stone. There is no safety measure that can be put in place to eliminate the risk and the aggressive lung disease. That is why the ban was necessary. A total ban is the only sensible option. Every day that passed prior to the ban coming in was costing lives. So this bill that we have before us strengthens the ban by destroying the product the moment that Australian Border Force detect and intercept it.

But this is unfinished business, and something our government is up for, and I want to make a few final comments before I finish. We need to continue the investment and the research into the health care of people with silicosis and, equally, people who might have been exposed to asbestos and have an asbestos related disease, like asbestosis or mesothelioma. There is more work to be done for us to support the healthcare research: ensuring that we have nurses and skilled health professionals to support those who might have been diagnosed with these diseases. The mortality rates of people who have silicosis, asbestosis or mesothelioma are far too high. And, as with previous cancers, where, as a government, as a community and as a research fraternity we have invested to improve the health outcomes of people who contract disease, we need to do something similar in this space.

For people who've been diagnosed with breast cancer, the survival rate is now much, much higher. For people who've been diagnosed with melanoma, survival rates are much, much higher. We need to see that investment come into this space as well, because this is a completely preventable disease. This is based upon workers contracting this disease through going to work. So these reforms that are before us—the banning of this product—is very much in line with Labor's fundamental belief that every worker should come home safe at the end of the day. It is not just about being exposed at work to hazardous risks of an immediate danger but also about being exposed to an ongoing risk. That is why these bills are so important.

I've touched briefly on asbestosis, which I think is an area related to this, and that's why I welcome the government's decision to expand the role of the Asbestos Eradication Agency to include dust related diseases, because, as I've mentioned, we now have a legacy issue. This stone does exist in our community—not to the extent of asbestos, but it is there. It is in people's kitchens, whether that be their workplace or their home, and we need to keep track of that. We also need to make sure we're developing guidelines on how best to manage that risk that people now have in their home.

Finally, can I give a shout-out and a special mention to all the young workers who have contracted silicosis through their work and say that we are all thinking of you and your families in your battle ahead. Your legacy will be to ensure that no other worker on an Australian construction site will be exposed to this disease, which leads to such terrible and tragic outcomes.