As of July 25, 2022, the Australian blood donation rules that previously barred individuals who lived in the UK for more than six months between 1980 and 1996 from donating blood have been lifted.
Maybe worth double checking at your local blood donor centre. There always seems to be a shortage of blood.
I received a blood transfusion in the UK during this time.
I saw this announcement a while back and checked, and I am still covered by this and unlikely to ever be able to donate blood. Most people don't receive transfusions, and it's much higher risk, so pretty much no reason to get rid of that limitation.