Maria Vamvakinou (Calwell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

s VAMVAKINOU () (): I have to confess I'm a little bit confused by the opposition's framing of this MPI, but I guess you'd have to sympathise with the opposition, because they obviously can't stand on their own record on tackling increasing energy prices, because there is no record, and there was never a plan. Listening to those opposite, you would think Australians just woke up overnight having to contend with energy bills. You would be forgiven for thinking that they weren't governing for nearly a decade and that the lights and heating in homes and the operating costs of engine rooms in factories weren't placing ever-increasing pressures on budgets under their watch. How disconnected from the realities facing ordinary Australians must they be to think that people were not calling out to those opposite for years to address the increasing cost-of-living pressures? I'm sorry to say this, and excuse the pun, but they must really have a dim view of the realities that working families and businesses across Australia have faced under their watch.

So let's enlighten those opposite. Excuse this second energy pun, but this MPI would really be laughable if it weren't speaking to such a serious and important issue that is on the minds of everyday Australians. Instead, it can only be described as shameless. This is an MPI put forward by those who were part of a government which oversaw four gigawatts of dispatchable power leaving the grid, and only one gigawatt replacing it. It's one put forward by those who, when they were in government, concealed energy price rises during the election and hid delays on major projects. The previous government, and indeed the former energy minister, the current shadow Treasurer, not only knew that electricity prices were skyrocketing; he also ordered that the information be hidden from the Australian people before the election. The member for Hume actually amended the industry code for electricity retailers to delay the release of increases in the default market offer until after the election—a whopping 19.7 per cent increase to the default market offer sneakily hidden from the Australian people. It is nothing but denials, delays and dishonesty from those opposite. On their watch, they promised $1 billion to support 3,800 megawatts of new generation over three years ago but delivered not a single dollar, not a single kilowatt.

We understand the impact that higher energy prices are having on households and businesses. After a decade of chaos and delay in domestic energy policy, working families are indeed under pressure. The Albanese Labor government is taking action to clean up the mess created by those opposite. We have a plan that is structural on both the macro and micro level. These challenges won't go away overnight, but, with the states and the private sector, we're investing $20 billion in the transmission grid, targeting 82 per cent renewables into the grid and reforming the market to reduce volatility and increase transparency for consumers.

Our $20 billion Rewiring the Nation fund is already delivering two major projects totalling $6 billion, including in my home state of Victoria. We're investing $157.9 million in energy security and reliability. We're investing $63.9 million in dispatchable storage technology. And, if you want evidence of how starved those opposite are of any outcomes from their time in office when it comes to the issue of energy prices, this investment is redirected from one of their failed programs which delivered zero megawatt capacity—zero, nil. It's a mark of shame for all of the lost years that could have been used to put this country in good shape and to face the ever-changing global circumstances. Whichever measurement you look at, whether it be megawatts, kilowatts or measured in sound policy, those opposite delivered zero, and the result, sadly, is what we are facing today.

While the world is undergoing a fundamental transformation shift in energy markets, those opposite failed, for nearly 10 long years, to prepare this country for the future. We called on them, and they ducked and weaved. In contrast, we put forward a plan, and we're getting on with the business of government. The current cost of living is a huge concern to my constituents, and the previous government's inaction did absolutely nothing to stop the escalating costs of essential resources. The only way to ensure equitable and affordable access to power in the future is through policy settings that will help develop the whole scale transition of our energy market.

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