The Baird Government must immediately reinstate the Dust Diseases Board and reassure victims they are not being abandoned.
The NSW Government secretly moved to abolish the independent body that has overseen compensation claims for asbestos sufferers and their families for decades.
In that time, the Board has cared for and administered compensation to thousands of sufferers of dust-borne diseases across NSW.
The Government’s decision to scrap the board is a cruel and callous act. It should do the right thing and reinstate it immediately.
The Shadow Minister for Finance, Services & Property, Clayton Barr MP, said today, “This is an incredibly efficient board full of experts. It can assess and process a claim within 30 days and support the families that need it most – to scrap it is unfathomable.
Dust borne disease is not a distant memory or a problem that we have solved comprehensively. Right now, the community needs to see a government leading on this issue, not retreating from it or using the fund as a cash cow.
This Government likes to pretend it is compassionate, but this is a cruel and callous act that shows its true colours.”
(Photo: Maree Stokes’ (at microphone) husband died of asbestos-related disease in 2003, and she says the board handled her case with great care. Supplied: AMWU)