Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Does the Prime Minister support providing $300 million of taxpayer funds to keep the Liddell power station open for just three more years even though a leaked task force report says that such an extension would not provide any guarantee of reliability and would defer private investment in new generation?

Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party, Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm awaiting the final report of the Liddell Taskforce, and I won't pre-empt the outcome of that report. Once we've received that report, we'll consider its recommendations. But we've been clear all the way along that, as generators come to the end of their natural lives, we want to see life extension or like-for-like replacement. This is all about adding in more supply to the electricity market whilst we ensure that the existing supply is managed very carefully. And we are seeing results. We've now seen four consecutive quarters of reductions in electricity retail prices—for the first time in recorded history.

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

The minister will resume his seat. The member for Hindmarsh on a point of order?

Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On direct relevance. It was a very tight question about one particular power station.

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

Yes, but the minister addressed the very specific part of the question about 30 or 40 seconds ago and he is being relevant to the policy subject matter. With respect, I don't think he could have been more specific in terms of his approach to the report. I think the minister is perfectly in order on the policy topic. If he changes policy topic, I'll bring him back to order very quickly. But so far he is in order.

Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party, Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I was saying, we have had four consecutive quarters of electricity price reductions in the CPI—a 3½ per cent reduction. In the last three months, we've also seen a 35 per cent reduction, compared to the same period last year, in wholesale electricity prices in the National Electricity Market, with Queensland, 30 per cent; South Australia, 50 per cent; Victoria, 38 per cent; Tasmania, 42 per cent; and Queensland, four per cent—to an average of 35 per cent. We will work with the energy companies to make sure this is passed through to electricity consumers, because the big stick legislation ensures that the substantial and sustained savings and reductions in costs must be passed through to consumers. And we are achieving all of this while we meet and beat our Kyoto and Paris targets.