Peter Garrett (Kingsford Smith, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Fowler for her question and report to the House that very good progress has been made in rolling out the Energy Efficient Homes package. This package will see the largest rollout of energy efficiency that we have ever had in Australia. It is a rollout of ceiling insulation and solar hot water, as the Prime Minister has just said, to up to 2.7 million Australian homes, slashing energy costs by up to 40 per cent. I am pleased to advise the House that we have received over 2,000 applications for insulation and solar hot water and that the call centre has already received over 33,000 calls. This shows that there is great and enthusiastic interest from Australians who want to take action on energy efficiency and householders who want to save money on energy bills and reduce their carbon footprint.

This is also good for supporting Australian jobs. I note that Bradford Insulation are looking to fill over 70 vacancies as a direct result of the stimulus package, ranging from national accounts managers through to plant operators. NSW Insulation estimate they will create an additional 100 job opportunities over three branches as a direct result of the stimulus package, and those positions are already being filled. This year the Insulation Council of Australia and New Zealand simply said:

The federal government’s stimulus package is very welcome and timely. The insulation initiative will help to save and grow local jobs during difficult economic times.

I note that, on 6 March in the Daily Telegraph, the General Manager of Dux Hot Water, Les Patterson, said—

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