NSW Country Labor candidate Leanne Atkinson has asked the Treasurer and Member for Bega Andrew Constance if he agrees with Premier Mike Baird’s refusal to rule out full privatisation of the state's publicly-owned poles and wires.
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“Last week Premier Baird, when asked directly whether he would fully privatise the entire electricity network – as opposed to the 49 per cent sale he is currently proposing – said it would be a matter for the next term of Parliament,” Ms Atkinson said.
"Mr Constance's government is not pretending it will keep Essential Energy, which is essential to our region, off the chopping block if he's re-elected.
“But I'm very aware that the Premier made this statement, not Mr Constance.
“That’s why I'm calling on Mr Constance to answer two very simple questions.
“Does he agree with the Premier that the 49 per cent privatisation of our electricity assets is just the start, and will be revisited in the next term?
“Or will he say here and now that he disagrees with the Premier and will oppose the sale of more than 49 per cent of our electricity assets?
"I oppose selling off our electricity assets because it means even higher power prices, cutting $1.7 billion from local services and infrastructure every year, and turning a public service built with public money into a private business for private profit," Ms Atkinson said.
"I've lived in this region for more than 20 years, and like the rest of us, I know that promises to spend money on state infrastructure tend to start and stop in Sydney.
In response Mr Constance said he called on Labor’s John Robertson and his candidates to explain their “lies” that prices are going up, when the regulator who sets the price made a draft ruling last week that Essential Energy customers should receive a price reduction of $346.
“Under Labor prices went up 60 per cent in five years as a result of their mismanagement of the network and the union rorts they happily go along with,” he said.
“Essential Energy is an inefficient business and electricity consumers are being ripped off.
“If the Labor candidate hadn't noticed, the government has determined that Essential Energy is not being leased and will remain in 100 per cent government control.
“Mike Baird and I have a $20billion infrastructure plan with $6billion ear marked for regional NSW. “Where is Labor's plan and if they have such a thing how will they pay for it - higher debt or higher taxes?
“Scare campaigns won’t get Robertson and his followers a vote, the community isn't blindly gullible,” Mr Constance said.
Hendy touts "record fall" in electricity prices
Member for Eden-Monaro Peter Hendy said there has been a "record fall in electricity prices" following the Federal Government's repeal of the carbon tax.
“Scrapping the carbon tax has delivered families and businesses in Eden-Monaro the biggest drop in electricity prices on record,” Dr Hendy said.
“[Recently] the ABS released the Consumer Price Index for the September Quarter 2014 — the first outcome since the Coalition scrapped Labor’s damaging carbon tax.
“In New South Wales, power bills are up to 10 per cent lower than they would have been with the carbon tax.
“There are likely to be further flow on benefits of lower electricity prices on the cost of other goods and services over the next coming quarter,” said Dr Hendy.
“Treasury estimates that the abolition of the carbon tax will reduce the CPI by around 0.7 percentage points through the year to the June quarter of 2015.”
“The figures confirm that scrapping the carbon tax is delivering real and immediate cost of living relief to Australian families.
“During Labor’s time in office, electricity prices rose by 101 per cent.
“We’ve scrapped Labor’s carbon tax to deliver relief to Australian families and business because Coalition is committed to lower electricity prices for Australian families.
“Bill Shorten wants to take away these savings with his plan to bring back the carbon tax,” Dr Hendy said.