Ken Ticehurst (Dobell, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to express my concern over plans by the New South Wales government to privatise the state’s energy sector. I have been working closely with local residents lobbying Energy Australia to have high-voltage powerlines in Wamberal placed underground. The local community have already had one win, with Energy Australia agreeing to place some of the powerlines underground in residential areas.

I am continuing to work with local residents to extend the underground powerline by 800 metres to include the northern section of Wamberal, where Wamberal Public School is located and a new preschool is under construction. Wamberal residents, led by John Holt of the Wamberal Action Group, and Belinda Porter, on behalf of the Wamberal-Tumbi Umbi mums, who have worked hard lobbying for these underground powerlines. They have told us that they organised letterbox drops, rallies and so on, so as to make their voices heard by the state government.

If the New South Wales Labor government were to privatise this sector, all of the Wamberal residents’ hard work could be wasted. The sale of Energy Australia would mean a private company would take over the Wamberal powerlines and the company would have the authority to reconsider and, indeed, reverse the underground placement of these powerlines.

As the local federal member, it is my job to represent the concerns of local residents and to run a ruler over projects that have the potential to affect the lifestyle that we enjoy on the Central Coast. I therefore call on Energy Australia and the New South Wales government to make a real commitment to the residents of Wamberal to ensure their voices are heard and their best interests are realised—now, and also in the event of privatisation.

After 12 years of neglecting New South Wales and mismanaging the state economy, privatisation of government sectors such as the energy sector is the only way, at present, that state Labor can raise more money to try and fix our ailing state—unless, of course, we have all Labor federal, state and territory governments. In that case, we could expect that the GST would be raised to bail out these inefficient and wasteful governments. The sale of the energy sector alone is expected to raise up to $20 billion, which state Labor is likely to squander yet again, leaving local residents without the much needed local infrastructure.

This year, the federal government has fully funded two significant projects on the Central Coast, which fall under the state government’s jurisdiction. The federal funding of $80.3 million I have secured for the Mardi to Mangrove Creek Dam pipeline will future-proof the Central Coast’s water supply, even though water supply is a state government responsibility. Tuggerah Lakes on the Central Coast is another responsibility that state Labor has neglected. The federal government has been able to provide $20 million to secure funding to restore this jewel in the crown. I say to the state government: do not let the privatisation of Energy Australia ruin what local residents have fought hard for. We need to have these high-voltage powerlines placed underground.