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MR WHITECROSS (11.07): Mr Speaker, the Labor Party will be supporting these amendments. I agree with Mr Moore that, on their own, these amendments do not do anything; but they provide a symbolic change which perhaps matches up with the subject of Ms Horodny's foreshadowed amendment. So, we assume that Mr Moore will be supporting Ms Horodny's amendment as well. We would certainly like to see more effort in this direction. Mr Moore's amendments are a useful, if symbolic, contribution to that.

MS HORODNY (11.08): Mr Speaker, the Greens support these amendments, as we are wholly supportive of any moves towards making ACTEW an energy service provider. However, I hope that Mr Moore realises that the name is just the first step. We have to go beyond the rhetoric and ACTEW's name. This is exactly why the Greens argued for a select committee to look into how ACTEW could be improved, to become focused on providing “energy” and not “electricity”. ACTEW has begun promoting energy-efficient houses, but there is so much more to do to make this organisation a genuine energy service provider. We have no guarantees under the legislation in question that this is what ACTEW will do.

There is a whole range of other activities that could be pursued more vigorously. ACTEW could also be given by this Assembly the mandate to vigorously promote alternative energies, to provide a comprehensive range of energy audit services, to finance schemes for water heaters and other energy-efficient appliances, to provide rebates for solar water heaters, and so on. It may be appropriate to set up an independent advisory service; but, at the moment, we are not being given the time to explore these ideas. We can call ACTEW “Energy and Water”; but, unless we look at ways of implementing the transition from ACTEW supplying electricity to ACTEW supplying energy services in the broader sense, it is meaningless.

It is up to the members of this Assembly as much as to the board of ACTEW to look at how we can put into action the objectives of turning ACTEW into one of the first genuine energy service providers in Australia. If Mr Moore were genuine in his concerns about ACTEW becoming an energy service provider, he would have supported a review of this legislation in a select committee so that we could look at the most appropriate structures and legislation in order to achieve these objectives.

MR MOORE (11.09): Mr Speaker, I hear people talking about who is genuine and who is not genuine. I remind Ms Horodny that the first initiatives taken in this area were by the Standing Committee on Conservation, Heritage and Environment, which looked at energy and co-generation of electricity. I also remind Ms Horodny that no Greens put any submissions to that committee at that time. To get up on your high horse and start talking about who is genuine and who is not genuine is just pushing the barrow a bit too hard.

Amendments agreed to.

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