Newly released cabinet papers revive calls for accountability over 1980s contaminated blood scandal
Survivors of Australia's 1980s contaminated blood crisis have uncovered cabinet minutes that suggest the government knew of serious safety lapses at the Commonwealth Serum Laboratories, prompting renewed demands for apology and compensation.
In the early 1990s Tristan Stanley learned he had hepatitis C after receiving a blood-clotting product, joining thousands of Australians infected by contaminated plasma in the 1970s-1990s. Recent access to National Archives records revealed 1985 cabinet minutes warning that the Commonwealth Serum Laboratories' fractionation plant in Parkville did not comply with the Code of Good Manufacturing Practice and would have been closed if the code were applied.
A 1988 follow-up minute confirmed the plant still fell far short of required standards. Survivors such as Tony David, who endured multiple liver transplants, and Niel Lake, a former federal police officer forced into early retirement, cite these documents as evidence of governmental neglect. They argue the lack of a formal apology and a comprehensive compensation scheme leaves many still suffering, especially haemophiliacs who cannot identify the specific donor responsible for their infection. The revelations have spurred renewed lobbying in Canberra, with hopes that the UK’s recent infected-blood inquiry may influence Australian policy.
Why it matters
The documents suggest the Australian government knew about unsafe blood practices, raising questions of accountability and the need for compensation for victims.
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