Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

As much as the opposition might interject and yell, they cannot get away from the fact that there have been 62 per cent increases in Western Australia over the last 40 years, and that is not about carbon pricing; that is about the decisions of the Western Australian government. Premier Barnett has, in fact, dealt with this matter publicly and has apologised to the people of Western Australia for the huge increases that his government is responsible for.

We took a different approach to Premier Barnett. We knew that there would be an increase in electricity prices of 10 per cent. That was modelled accurately by Treasury. We ensured that those who needed support the most were assisted, including the pensioner who the Leader of the Opposition refers to. So if he has a genuine concern I suggest he does the following. I suggest that he speaks to Premier Barnett about assisting people in his state on fixed incomes with the increases that Premier Barnett has been responsible for. I also suggest that he get on board with the government's approach and the government's plan to deal at the next COAG meeting with these kinds of increases in electricity prices, rather than trying to confuse and mislead about the true drivers of electricity prices.

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