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

I thank Senator Duniam for his question and acknowledge the fact that as a senator from Tasmania he has particular concern and interest in ensuring affordability and reliability for households and small businesses right across Australia in terms of their energy supply. Guaranteeing affordable, reliable, secure energy is a complex issue that delves right across the issues of energy generation, transmission and retail supply. It is for those reasons of complexity that the Turnbull government is taking action across a number of different fronts in relation to our energy policy, including dealing with gas supply issues in Australia. That is why the Turnbull government has taken action to drive down the price of gas by putting in place the domestic gas security mechanism, a mechanism to ensure that there is sufficient supply of gas to meet the forecast needs of Australian consumers, and by putting in place new rules to govern the transportation of gas to deliver lower prices, which we will see come into effect as a result of increased efficiency and liquidity in the gas market. These gas reforms are the most significant market reforms in that space in two decades.

Equally, we are taking action to stop energy companies from gaming the system in the National Electricity Market, through the abolition of the limited merits review process, which has allowed the network businesses to game the system and has led to higher electricity prices for some Australians. Indeed, the Queensland government has simply used their state-owned generators as a cash cow, abusing their place and their position. Equally, as a government we are investing in new technology and innovation, such as Snowy Hydro 2.0, and pursuing areas of demand-side management. At the recent COAG Energy Council, we got serious reforms agreed to and implemented, including the requirements for a three-year notice of closure for energy facilities, generator reliability and security obligations. As the AEMO chair, Tony Marxsen, said at that COAG meeting, 'It was the one where the energy ship turned around'—and, indeed, it is only part of our work in this complex area. (Time expired)