The question of whether companies will be able to pay fines and reparations to survivors and the families of the Whakaari White Island eruption has been under scrutiny at the sentencing in Auckland.
The Environment Court heard more from the victims, families and lawyers atthe second day of the sentencing on Tuesday.
Whakaari Management Ltd, White Island Tours, Volcanic Air Safaris, Aerius and Kahu NZ are facing fines of up to $1.5 million each and reparations for their health and safety failings leading up to the disaster.
GNS Science, the sixth guilty party, will be sentenced separately this week.
Some of the parties claim they are in no position to pay anything, and another is seeking fine deductions of up to 55 per cent.
Whakaari Management Ltd wants a 10 per cent reduction on any fine, pointing to its lack of previous convictions and its co-operation with authorities, but prosecutor Kristy McDonald KC objected to this.
WorkSafe prosecutor Kristy McDonald objected to a 10 per cent fine reduction bid by Whakaari Management Ltd. Photo / RNZ
“By contrast, WorkSafe says 5 per cent in total. The fact that there were no previous incidents, namely eruptions when tourists or workers were on Whakaari, was because of luck, not good management,” said McDonald.
White Island Tours (WIT), like some other defendants, had insurance to pay for reparations for the disaster.
WorkSafe wanted WIT’s $5 million pool to be distributed among the survivors and families.
McDonald asked for $110,000 to be given to each surviving victim for emotional harm; $20,000 for the family of each person who died; and $100,000 each for any dependent children whose parents had died.
The company wanted 55 per cent off due to its guilty plea, its offers to make amends, co-operation, remorse and no previous conviction.
McDonald also objected to this, and called the requests excessive.
“There may be a degree of double-dipping in a number of the factors, for example, there is some overlap between the discount sought for guilty plea, the offers to make amends and remorse, as all come from an acknowledgment of responsibility.”
She also argued many of the offers to make amends were made by Ngāti Awa, and not WIT itself.
She said any requests to drop fines or reparations because of lack of funds should be dismissed.
“We say that’s utterly inappropriate in this case. WorkSafe submits the court should still impose reparation and fines to illustrate the severity of this offending and for the benefit of general deterrents to illustrate what the otherwise appropriate financial penalties would be.”
Whakaari Management Ltd lawyer Jaimes Cairney repeated claims the company was simply operating as the landowner of Whakaari, and did not have responsibility in ensuring the health and safety of the operators.
Still from video shot from a tourist boat near Whakaari just as the volcano erupted, about 2.15pm on December 9, 2019.
“Whakaari Management Ltd as licenser or landowner, or someone in the position of a landowner, however we frame it, Whakaari Management Ltd cannot be more culpable than the tour operators,” Cairney said.
He pointed fingers at government agencies and their failures to effectively regulate safe operations.
“WorkSafe, Embop, Nema, GNS, and the New Zealand police, eyes wide open to all those parties, and that provided some comfort to the operators that appropriate experts were comfortable with the assessments of risk and the manner in which those risks were being managed.”
Cairney said WorkSafe was well aware of the risk.
On Wednesday, the third day of sentencing, it is expected at least two more of the defendants would make their submission to Judge Thomas.
