Andrew Murray (WA, Australian Democrats) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Santoro, the Minister representing the Minister for Health and Ageing. Minister, Australia has massively reduced road deaths through black spot roadworks and ongoing national public education campaigns. Will the government now consider taking equivalent action to reduce the 4,900 work related deaths a year in workplaces, which is double that of road deaths, and the 9,000 deaths a year from preventable hospital mistakes, which is four times that of road deaths? What is the government doing to replicate road safety type activity in workplace deaths and preventable hospital deaths, such as regular totals by state publicised on the nightly TV news, publicity on black spots, more funded public campaigns to reduce these totals and concerted coordinated national campaigns? If we as a community are rightly appalled by road deaths and injuries, and if governments have tried so hard to attack the road deaths problem across Australia, when will we see the same sort of energy and commitment on workplace deaths and preventable hospital deaths?