Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Hansard source

On 2 December, of which we will face the three-month anniversary next weekend, the Senate received the carbon tax bills. Right now we are waiting for the Leader of the Opposition, who professes his concern about jobs and costs, to do something about jobs and costs. We can actually make a difference to electricity costs, because what was it that the ACT regulator said?

The Commission estimates that complete removal of the price on carbon … would reduce retail electricity prices in the ACT by about 12 per cent.

But it is not just in the ACT. In Queensland, the QCA said, as quoted by the Minister for Trade in Queensland:

Businesses would save between 7 and 10 per cent on their electricity bills depending on which tariff they are using. The only people standing between small business operators and lower electricity bills are your local Labor Senators

The head of the ACCC has also said that electricity prices would fall. The head of the Energy Supply Association has also said electricity prices would fall. Only two days ago, what we heard from EnergyAustralia is that they gave their guarantee to pass on the full cost of electricity reductions. If you want lower electricity prices, get the Leader of the Opposition to get out of the way in the Senate.

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