Jerome Laxale (Bennelong, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Climate Change and Energy. How will Australians benefit from the Albanese Labor government's action on energy prices? What has been the response to the government's action, and what actions has the government rejected?

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

BOWEN (—) (): I thank my honourable friend for his question and his leadership on matters of climate change and energy. I'm looking forward to joining his electorate for the forum in a couple of weekends time. In relation to our energy relief plan, I'm happy report to the honourable member that, in our home state of New South Wales, for example, increases of 40 per cent that were predicted have now, for the households which have received our rebates negotiated with the states, changed to an eight per cent reduction. They went from a 40 per cent increase to an eight per cent reduction, which on average, for a family New South Wales, equates to $843. That is the impact of our intervention of relief.

We know that this has had a very substantial impact. We've heard from the Secretary to the Treasury that our energy relief package has reduced inflation by three-quarters of one per cent, and half of that percentage is a result of the coal and gas caps which have been opposed by those opposite. We heard from the Australian Energy Regulator last week that the intervention has seen prices change from 50 per cent increases down to around 20 per cent. We've seen also AEMO note the impact of the government's intervention to reduce power price rises.

I'm asked if we have rejected any alternative approaches, and we have, such as the approach from the Leader of the Opposition, who said at APIA that he would rip up this intervention, that he would repeal it. Now, why would a leader of the opposition possibly do such a thing? Why would he repeal an intervention which has seen increases of 40 per cent change to reductions of eight per cent? I think I might have worked it out. I think the Leader of the Opposition's been given more advice from his shadow minister. His shadow minister was on Sunday Agenda and he was asked about these price rises, and at first he denied them. He denied the impact of our energy price relief and then he had a different alibi—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will pause for a moment. The member for Fairfax is warned. If he says one more thing during question time—he simply cannot yell while a minister is speaking. And same with the member for Hume, who has the MPI. He will not be saying another word for the rest of question time, I'm sure. The minister has the call and will be heard in silence.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Fairfax went on to say, 'There's no evidence here that the intervention itself was the thing that got prices down.' This creates a considerable mystery. What was it? Was it the coronation? Was it the final episode of Succession, perhaps—no spoilers! Was it Sweden winning the Eurovision Song Contest? Was it the honourable member's videos from Fukushima and Hiroshima promoting nuclear energy? What was it that could have got energy prices down over the last months? What possibly could it have been? Perhaps it was the intervention designed to do just that, which honourable members opposite opposed with every bit of energy they could muster, which they would repeal at the first opportunity. Perhaps it is the rebates and the coal and gas price caps which we imposed on the energy markets. Perhaps that's what done it! Perhaps that is what reduced the price rises. (Time expired)