Julia Irwin (Fowler, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I wish to raise an issue of concern to a growing number of people in the Fowler electorate. The proposal of the New South Wales government to privatise parts of the electricity industry has alarmed many consumers as well as employees of electricity generators and suppliers. Consumers have little confidence that electricity prices would fall if privatisation goes ahead when experience from other states with private generators shows that prices are higher for average consumers. Under this proposal there is no guarantee that the private sector will build a new generating plant. New South Wales will not have sufficient power by 2015. Workers in the power industry are rightly concerned for the security of their jobs. Interstate experience has shown that some suppliers have cut their workforce by half. In one case, 500 call centre jobs were outsourced to India. There is great concern that overseas owners will gain control of our power industry.

In 1946, the long-serving conservative Premier of South Australia, Tom Playford, could not get the private electricity supplier to extend services to new growth areas of the state, so he nationalised the industry. Those governments who today seek to sell the people’s power assets may some day find themselves in the same position. I call on Premier Iemma to listen to the voices of the people of New South Wales.