Bernie Banton, who was the face of the fight against asbestos in Australia, was honored posthumously Jan. 21 with the opening of the Bernie Banton Centre at Sydney’s Concord Hospital. The centre, which is supported by a pledge of $5 million in funding from Australia’s Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, will study asbestos diseases including mesothelioma.

According to a report in the Herald Sun, the Bernie Banton Centre will be the world’s largest stand-alone asbestos diseases and research institute.

Banton was a leader in the campaign to raise awareness of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases in Australia, and a tireless fighter to obtain compensation for workers exposed to asbestos on the job.

The Hills News cites Prime Minister Rudd as saying the death rate among Australians as a result of mesothelioma is increasing, with an estimated 13,000 diagnosed cases expected by 2020. Rudd told the News, “Next year, around 750 Australians will be diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases. These are bad figures.”

Bernie Banton passed away as a result of mesothelioma in May 2008, at age 61.

Photo by Andrew Quilty, Sydney Morning Herald

Tags: asbestos, Australia, Bernie Banton, Bernie Banton Centre, mesothelioma, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd

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