Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Road Safety) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak to my motion for the second reading of my private senator's bill, the Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law Amendment (Improving Safety) Bill 2019. It shouldn't have been me introducing this bill, but, unfortunately, due to the inaction of the inept minister responsible for the portfolio, the member for Riverina, Michael McCormack, I had to take action. I have pleaded with Minister McCormack's office on multiple occasions during public hearings of the ongoing inquiry into the management of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority to take the lead and introduce appropriate legislation to minimise the chance of the tragedy that I will speak about from ever happening again. Sadly, the minister did not act.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority's performance throughout this whole process has been nothing short of appalling. The complete disrespect to Damien Mills's family was astounding. Officials did not return calls, information was withheld, and they only really started engaging with the family once I initiated the inquiry in this chamber into AMSA's management—and I couldn't think of a worse word than 'management', because there was none. There is a lot more to be said of AMSA and the officials who have been in charge of this sorry saga, but we will get to that once the current inquiry has concluded. The Mills family in Western Australia deserve far better than this.

Damien Mills was born on 29 August 1979 and raised in Queens Park. He was 35 years old at the time of his death. Damien was married to Nicole, and they had three children together, Alanna, Jack and Alexis, all of whom were under nine years old at the time of Damien's death. Damien was described as a kind person and a dedicated family man. As a mark of his love for his children, he had a tattoo of his three children's names within a tree of life on his right shoulder. Tragically, on 31 October 2014, Damien fell overboard from a commercial vessel between Fremantle and Rottnest. On 1 November 2014, Damien was found deceased, about three nautical miles off Leighton Beach, around midday.

On 30 October 2017, the inquest into the death of Damien Mills was handed down. The coroner urged AMSA to ensure that safety systems be implemented and duly carried out by operators with care and diligence. Nothing was actioned by AMSA. I repeat: nothing. The coroner's report says:

If police had been notified that the deceased was missing at the time the vessel returned to the Fremantle Fishing Boat Harbour, at approximately 4.00 pm, Sergeant Wear indicated that the Water Police would have tasked helicopters to run the route taken by the charter boat from Fremantle Harbour back to Parakeet Bay as an immediate starting point.

That is the evidence from the Water Police. The report goes on:

They would also have got vessels to run that route, breaking up the route into sections for them to search, with the knowledge that he couldn't have drifted far from the track line in that space of time. The timing of the notification is important in that regard, as the closer in time the search and rescue can begin, the more confined the area that is required to be searched.

In that regard, as well as getting assets immediately on to the scene, police officers would have attended the charter boat to interview the crew and other passengers to try and ascertain the last time the deceased had been seen and any unusual events that had occurred, in order to narrow the search area and increase the probability of finding the deceased. Police officers would also have spoken to the deceased's family to try to find out information about the deceased, such as his swimming ability, general health and medications, and even any known demeanour in a fight or flight situation to ascertain a timeframe of survival. Experts such as Dr Luckin would also assist in that regard.

Based upon his own experience, Sergeant Wear expressed the opinion that notification at 4.00 pm, or even 4.30 pm—

because it was narrowed down that Damien fell overboard somewhere near the windmills, just off Rottnest, between 3.30 and 3.45 that afternoon—

would still have given the Water Police a fairly high chance that they would have found the deceased, and found him alive. Expressed another way, Sergeant Wear stated that it was "highly likely" a Search and Rescue team would have found the deceased if they had been notified when the charter boat returned to the harbour.

The whole sorry saga is why I am calling for compulsory headcounts—and not just one, as AMSA have suggested. AMSA have suggested just one—not at the beginning, not at the end, not in the middle; just any time there is a journey. If that skipper had implemented the headcount that was in his own safety management system, the alarm would have gone off that one person was missing. There's a lot more to be said about the skipper, because he couldn't even get the headcount right in the logbook when he first took off from Sardine Wharf. I have said many times, with my colleagues on the rural and regional affairs and transport committee, pleading with the minister: 'You can fix this, Minister. You can get a pen and a piece of paper and draft up some legislation to make sure that this never happens again, or, if someone does go overboard, a simple headcount will notify the appropriate authorities.'

I'll have a lot more to say, as I said. I can't say too much more because the inquiry into AMSA's performance is still going on. But there are a couple of thankyous I'd like to make. I'd like to acknowledge Nicole and Richard. Nicole is Damien's widow and Richard is Damien's father. Your strength has given me strength. I will never know what pain you are suffering, but I hope Damien's law can go some way to making sure it doesn't happen again. I'd also like to thank my colleagues on the Senate committee for helping me out in the inquiry. I'd also like to pay special thanks to Hannah Dibley, Senior Research Officer in the Procedure Office in the Department of the Senate, and of course Jackie Morris, whom we all know, the Clerk Assistant, Procedure, in the Procedure Office in the Department of the Senate, for your outstanding work in helping me craft this. I commend Damien's law to the chamber.