Fiona Phillips (Gilmore, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

For 30 years, Andy and Katrina have lived, worked and raised their family off grid on a rural property in my electorate of Gilmore. They grow their own food, have solar power, collect rainwater and do all they can to reduce their environmental footprint. In 2021, one year after losing their catering business Caterina Catering in the Black Summer bushfires, the couple reopened their commercial kitchen and shopfront in nearby Kangaroo Valley Village. Their speciality catering business rose from the ashes and now continues to nourish the local community with fresh and healthy produce.

When I dropped in to see the couple last week, Andy was moved to tears by the help they had received from me and this government to get their business up and running again. They were excited to give me a tour of the new kitchen and to show off the four fantastic new high-tech energy-efficient appliances they purchased thanks to a Commonwealth energy efficiency grant. The $21,800 grant meant that Andy and Katrina could replace old, second-hand equipment with a new energy-efficient, commercial-grade freezer, wine fridge and microwave oven as well as a new air-conditioner. A self-confessed energy nerd, Andy said that in the first month of installation the freezer alone had cut the business's power bill by around 27 per cent. He expects to see even greater savings on the next power bill.

Along with energy bill relief for households and small businesses and a tax cut for every taxpayer, these are just some of the ways we're providing cost-of-living relief while fighting inflation.

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