Tracey Roberts (Pearce, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is plainly wrong for those opposite to claim that the Albanese Labor government has not delivered on its promise to cut electricity bills by $275. Wrong. We absolutely took urgent action to shield Australian families and businesses from the worst of energy price spikes through a carefully developed plan. Our Energy Price Relief Plan is providing targeted energy bill relief and investment in cleaner cheaper energy for the future, because we are a government that cares. We care about the environment. We care about the budget of Australian families. We govern to make the lives of all Australians better.

In contrast, the opposition voted to make power bills for families hundreds of dollars higher than they need to be. They voted against electricity price relief. They said no to that, no to helping families and businesses. And today we heard Clare Savage, the chair of the Australian Energy Regulator, say that power prices are much lower than they'd expected. The regulator said, 'We have seen a very substantial decrease in the price of contracts since the intervention in the coal and gas market, a decrease of 40 per cent compared with October last year. Clare Savage also said that it is important to keep investing in new sources of renewable energy so that we can keep moving forward, away from fossil fuels.

This is why the Albanese Labor government is doing what they are doing. The final default market offer, the DMO, confirmed the Albanese government has limited the worst of the energy price spikes while investing in a long-term plan to get cheaper, cleaner energy to all Australians. The increases in DMO prices are up to $492 lower than they would have been without the government's intervention for residential customers. We are on the right track. We are making decisions that help ease the cost-of-living pressures that Australian families face.

The world is a challenging place, and we are in the midst of the most significant shock to energy markets in half a century, due to Russia's prolonged attack on Ukraine. That war is wreaking havoc on energy markets around the world. That is why our Energy Price Relief Plan is so very important. Our plans on energy and renewable energy are practical and sensible. Renewable energy is cheaper energy. Yet those opposite have voted against every single dollar of bill relief and even said that they would go as far as repealing the actions we have put in place. That same Liberal-National coalition has left Australia with a trillion dollars worth of debt.

We are acting to fix the mess left by those opposite. We are dealing with the results of a decade of chaos, a decade of denial and a decade of delay in energy policy, courtesy of those opposite. That saw four gigawatts of dispatchable capacity leave the system, with only one gigawatt entering to replace those losses.

Australians are also dealing with the increasing energy costs that the previous Liberal-National government deliberately hid from them before the election. The previous government, including the former energy minister—the current shadow Treasurer—not only knew that electricity prices were skyrocketing; it also ordered that the information be hidden from the Australian people before the election. Shame!

The member for Hume amended the industry code for electricity retailers on 7 April, just three days before the election was called, to delay the release of increases in the default market offer for New South Wales, Queensland and South Around until after the election. The Albanese Labor government is looking after Australian families and businesses and is demonstrating that.

Around 90,000 small businesses in Western Australia that meet the definition of an electricity small customer will receive quarterly bill relief of $650 automatically from 1 July 2023. We are modernising the grid and building a system that works for 82 per cent renewable energy that will protect consumers from global market prices or disruptions in the future. We are working to create a strong foundation for a better future for Australians.

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