Nick Xenophon (SA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

My contribution on the Building Energy Efficiency Disclosure Bill 2010 will be very brief. As an aside, I take this opportunity to congratulate Julia Gillard on her ascension as Australia’s 27th Prime Minister. Senator Milne has covered the areas that I wanted to cover in this bill. She is right: this bill is a welcome step but the bill ought to go further on mandatory disclosure. The low-hanging fruit in the debate around energy and reducing greenhouse gases is to have energy efficient buildings. That is very much the way forward. We ought to have a white certificate scheme that is mandatory. We ought to go much further than that, but at least this is a step in the right direction. I think we need to seriously consider including other buildings, not just the buildings included in this scheme. With those few words, I indicate my support for this bill. I will support the Greens amendment, but ultimately we need to have a white certificate scheme in this country, a mandatory scheme which will be very effective in reducing greenhouse emissions from energy inefficient buildings because it will require greater energy efficiency. In recent meetings I have had with those who are responsible for servicing air conditioners, for instance, there are great gains to be made by mandatory and detailed inspections of air-conditioning units to reduce the waste that occurs now through inefficient air-conditioning units. I have put my position on this and I now look forward to the passage of the bill.