Jonathon Duniam (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Education and Training, representing the Minister for the Environment and Energy, Senator Birmingham. Can the minister update the Senate on the actions the Turnbull government is taking to put downward pressure on power prices?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Duniam for his question, and I know his strong interest in relation to the cost of living pressures that many Australians face and that many Australian businesses face, including in his home state of Tasmania, in terms of accessing secure, affordable and reliable energy. The Turnbull government is taking unprecedented action right across every factor of the energy supply chain to drive down prices. Across networks, across generation and across retailers, we are delivering the action that will put downward pressure on power prices.

In relation to networks, which account for around 50 per cent of energy bills in Australia, we have legislation in the parliament being debated today to abolish the ability of networks to game the system through the limited merits review process, which to date is estimated to have cost consumers around $6.5 billion. That is $6.5 billion on power bills around the country that can or should have been avoided, and our reforms will make sure that that system works far more effectively in terms of the network regulation in the future.

In relation to generation, which comprises around 30 per cent of household energy bills, our domestic gas security mechanism will ensure adequate supply for the domestic market and, indeed, it has already seen a fall in the spot price of gas over recent months. In the generation front, we are undertaking further investment such as that in the Snowy 2.0 scheme, which will see around 350 gigawatt hours of energy delivered—enough to power at full capacity for more than seven days.

Senator Wong interjecting—

That's far more, Senator Wong, than any of Jay Weatherill's diesel generators can generate! We are putting real pressure on the retail component—12 per cent of the bills: action to ensure consumers in every household across Australia can manage to get the best deal on their retail price in the future. (Time expired)

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Duniam, a supplementary question.

Jonathon Duniam (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the minister for his answer. Can the minister further apprise the Senate of the commitments the Turnbull government has secured from electricity retailers?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The truth is that 50 per cent of Australian households have not moved retailers or contracts in the past five years, even though for many of them savings could be as high as $1,500 off their electricity bill. That is why last week the Prime Minister and Mr Frydenberg worked through with energy retailers to secure additional commitments to ensure those consumers, those households, get the best deals. Those retailers will now write to one million customers who have come off discounts and a further one million customers who are on standing offers, all of them by Christmas, meaning two million Australian households stand to benefit by getting a better deal on their energy bill by the year's end.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I know those opposite don't seem to care, Mr President, but on this side I know Senator Duniam and everybody else believes that two million Australian households accessing cheaper electricity is a great thing. It is something to do everything you can possibly seek to deliver. While they won't do that hard work and they don't care, we are determined to ensure that every Australian household gets the best possible deal on their energy contracts.

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Duniam, a final supplementary question.

Jonathon Duniam (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the minister aware of any alternative approaches?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We know that those opposite have turned a blind eye to energy issues and particularly to the spiralling costs in the energy sector. There was a real call-out last week, when Mr Butler, the shadow energy minister, admitted that Labor was warned about the impact on the gas export market and the way it was operating. They were warned that there would be higher prices. They were warned that there would be tighter supply. But, of course, they did nothing. It has taken the Turnbull government to address these issues, to take action. We see the irrationality of the Labor Party's energy policies writ large in my home state of South Australia, where this summer we are going to see Jay Weatherill and the state Labor government fire up diesel generators to keep the renewable energy in the system going. That, of course, is the madness of the policies that those opposite propagate, which have driven prices up, driven reliability and affordability down and created the type of circumstance that hurts Australian households and businesses. (Time expired)