Rowan Ramsey (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Will the Prime Minister advise the House on the action the government is taking to reduce retail electricity prices for millions of Australians?

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Rowan Ramsey (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You may well laugh, but I come from South Australia—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Grey will resume his seat. Members on my left will cease interjecting. I did not hear the second half of the member for Grey's question.

Dr Chalmers interjecting—

The member for Rankin is warned. The Prime Minister will resume his seat. I did not hear the second half of the question. The member for Grey will repeat his question.

Rowan Ramsey (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Will the Prime Minister advise the House on the action the government is taking to reduce retail electricity prices for millions of Australian households, including in my electorate of Grey?

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

It says a lot about the opposition that, when a South Australian member asks about energy, they seek to drown him out with shouting. Their shame—the South Australian energy situation—is the worst in the nation and it has been created by Labor Party ideology and politics. The Deputy Prime Minister, the Treasurer, the Minister for Energy and I met today with the major electricity retailers to ensure that we got a better deal for Australian families. What we know—

Ms O'Neil interjecting—

Mr Hammond interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will resume his seat. The member for Hotham is warned. The member for Perth will leave under 94(a). We are not going to do this every day. The Prime Minister has the call.

The member for Perth then left the chamber.

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

Thank you, Mr Speaker. What we know is that too many Australian households and businesses are paying more for their electricity than they need to. Because they are on discounted plans which have expired they have gone back onto standing offers and are paying far too much for their electricity. We're not talking about small amounts. The Australian Energy Market Commission has identified that the difference in the plans between what people should be paying and what they are paying can run into the hundreds of dollars a year—in some cases, up to $1,500 a year. As the Treasurer said in the press conference after the meeting, the best friends of the retailers are complexity and inertia, because consumers simply do not know what their rights are and what their opportunities are.

So we have secured real reforms to the electricity sector which will benefit families right now. We're ensuring that the electricity retailers will make their customers aware of the best deals that are available to them. In particular, if a customer is on a discounted plan—as many people are—which is coming to an end, retailers will have an obligation to advise that customer that their plan is coming to an end and what the consequence will be if it comes to an end without them going onto a new plan, if they go on to the standing offer. They will show what that would mean for the customer in terms of additional expenditure based on their last year's consumption.

This is going to involve a change to the regulations under the National Electricity Law. Because of their support for it, it can be done on an expedited basis and can be done in six weeks. Our commitment is to ensure that our consumers, families, households and businesses are well informed and that the retailers give them the information that enables them to ensure they have the best deal. This is action right now. It will mean families will be paying no more than they need to right now, remedying the mistakes made over so many years by Labor.