Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Families and Payments) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. According to analysis by National Seniors, increasing power prices, combined with this government's plan to cut the energy supplement to new pensioners, will mean that pensioners in New South Wales will be around $600 a year worse off. Why is the Prime Minister cutting the energy supplement, when it will make it harder for pensioners to stay warm this winter?

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

Some of the people who are most vulnerable and most in need of the protections that we have secured for them today with the energy retailers are indeed pensioners. As you know, the Brotherhood of St Laurence, St Vincents and the Grattan Institute have observed that far too many people—older people in particular, pensioners, and people on lower incomes—are paying standard offers for electricity because they are not aware of, and have not taken advantage of, lower discounted plans. This is the point that we have been addressing with the energy retailers today. The critically important thing is to ensure that those customers are protected, and that will be done by ensuring that it will become part of the law—the regulations under the national electricity law—that, if they are on an outdated or expired plan or a plan that is about to expire, they have to be made fully aware of what the consequences of that are and the opportunities to get a better deal and therefore pay less for their electricity. That's going to particularly benefit the people that you're referring to.

As to the general protections in the electricity market, can I say to the honourable member that the most important thing is to ensure that Australians right now are not paying any more for electricity than they need to pay. We have many reforms underway. Bringing down the price of gas—there has already been some progress there. We're stopping the network owners from gaming the system and appealing against the regulators' reviews and getting higher prices for their poles and wires.

Mr Fitzgibbon interjecting—

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

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

The Prime Minister will resume his seat—so is the member for Hunter, and now the member for Isaacs is too. The Manager of Opposition Business might explain to the member for Isaacs the roles that both he and the Leader of the House have. The member for Jagajaga on a point of order?

Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Families and Payments) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On relevance, Mr Speaker. The question is: why is the Prime Minister cutting the energy supplement?

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

The member for Jagajaga will resume her seat. The Prime Minister has the call.

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

I can simply say that the opposition banked that saving in their own election campaign. They took it on. They banked it. The important point is that what we have done today is to secure important reforms that will benefit all Australian families, but it will in particular benefit the families, pensioners, people on lower incomes and older Australians who number far too prominently among those who are paying standard offers because they are not aware of the ability to get a better deal. We want no Australian family to be paying any more than they need to for their electricity, and we have taken the important steps today to do that. That is not something the Labor Party has ever advocated or done— (Time expired)