Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

Nothing is too low for this Leader of the Opposition. Having called on us to listen to the experts in the industry, and when we do, when we get their advice and we follow it, he now wants to attack the integrity of those very distinguished Australians who form the Energy Security Board and gave us such advice.

Let me be very clear about this: reliability and affordability go hand-in-hand. What we have seen in South Australia is that, because electricity is so unreliable, its price has become so volatile. More and more often we are seeing prices spiking well over $200 a megawatt-hour. That means South Australians, including the constituents of the member for Port Adelaide, are paying much, much more for their electricity. They are paying more for electricity and they are not keeping the lights on. So, it is vital to combine reliability and affordability and responsibility in meeting your international emissions reduction commitments. That is what the Energy Security Board has done. They have done that in their recommendations, which the government is adopting and will be taking to COAG. The opposition members who supported and welcomed the appointment of the Energy Security Board should stop this smearing of the integrity of the Energy Security Board members, which we hear from the Leader of the Opposition—smearing away, having a go at their integrity. He should be backing them, as we are, because they have the best understanding of the market. They have recommended a reform which will ensure we have affordable, reliable, energy, and we meet our international emissions reduction commitments.

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