Robert Oakeshott (Lyne, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

The Germans are leading the way in the delivery and the example of the benefits of a gross feed-in tariff system. We do not have to argue the rights and wrongs of the policy. Just about every state or territory in Australia has already done that. They have all held various inquiries and now we have a range of state and territory systems. Ironically, the best of those is the gross system in the ACT, and I say it is ironic because the last people to move on trying to get some national leadership and consistency across state and territory borders are in this place, in this building, in Canberra.

The absurd situation we now have on this government’s watch, in this climate change debate, is that towns such as Tuggeranong and Queanbeyan have different billing systems despite there being the same energy use in their houses. We have all the border towns now having a whole different system when we are supposed to have a borderless national electricity market with a national electricity grid and we are supposed to be seeing the government lead on the climate change agenda. Here is an opportunity through COAG for government to show some real authority and some real leadership in establishing a national, consistent feed-in tariff scheme, and the beauty of it is that it engages people. If people do better in their own houses, they benefit. At the moment in this climate change debate we are seeing a welfare system being established for the top end of town, and I think that frustrates people. It disengages people in this debate. If someone wants to do better in their own home, where is the opportunity for them to benefit?

If the government are not willing to support the Renewable Energy Amendment (Feed-in-Tariff for Electricity) Bill 2009or, I might note, the amendments that Senator Milne has put up to the renewable energy bill that passed through this chamber last night—I ask them to look at the COAG processes and to bring to the top of the agenda the issue of a national feed-in tariff scheme. It has been sitting in the bowels of COAG for some time. It is a safe defence for government to say, ‘We’re looking at it through COAG,’ but people want to be engaged, and now is certainly the time to do it.

There are businesses on the line because of this. There are new-economy businesses which are investing overseas because Australia is slow on the uptake with regard to the renewable sector. I therefore strongly argue for government, either the executive or through COAG or through things such as their National Strategy on Energy Efficiency, to look at ways of including a national feed-in tariff in the scheme. I ask everyone to look at this bill and to think about supporting it. I would love the government to adopt it and for it to become part of the energy solution for the future.

Bill read a first time.

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