Page 1116 - Week 03 - Thursday, 26 February 2009
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concession cardholders here in the ACT. It appears that it is complex and unwieldy to exempt low-income families from the costs associated with the feed-in tariff at the point of application of the charge, so it would be appropriate for the government to consider how the rebates that currently exist could be adjusted upwards to compensate concession cardholders.
This is a discussion we have had at some length—looking for the best way to do this in an efficient manner, in a manner that is both economically and administratively efficient. That is why we have come to the view that the concession cardholder group, which currently includes pensioners, healthcare cardholders and veterans, is the best way to go about that. I welcome the minister’s assurance that the government will be closely monitoring the situation and examining mechanisms to support those most affected. I urge the government to make an explicit commitment to review the status of the concessions in light of the introduction of the feed-in tariff, with a view to raising it.
In conjunction with this, we remain committed to seeing the ACT’s energy efficiency programs focus initially on low-income families where energy audits and retrofits can make a significant difference to energy consumption and thereby ease pressure on energy bills. This is about being proactive and cutting the energy bills in the first place. One of the amendments we will introduce is to make the feed-in tariff proportionate, to confirm that in the legislation. That also reinforces this point of reducing the energy consumption.
As I stated at the outset, this amendment bill is to ensure that the scheme as agreed for householders and microgenerators can be implemented smoothly on 1 March 2009. We support many of the technical amendments that the government has proposed and will also put forward other amendments to ensure that the intent in the original act is fully captured.
The Greens are proposing to enshrine in the act that the cost of the feed-in scheme is passed on proportionally to electricity account holders, as I just mentioned. This was the original intention when the act was passed in 2008. This amendment seeks to make that principle explicit and clear in the legislation. I accept that it was the intention—and discussed with the Australian Energy Regulator that this is the way that it should apply—but we feel it is appropriate that it be explicit in the legislation.
We understand and support the minister’s intention to address the application of the feed-in tariff to medium and large-scale installations before July and look forward to working with the government over the next few months to develop a sophisticated policy that will drive the development of a vibrant renewable energy sector in the ACT. Consideration needs to be given to the percentage of premium prices that are appropriate for medium and large-scale installations as well as the concept of introducing an annual scheme cap for the whole of the ACT.
To this list the Greens would add that there needs to be thought given to differentiated tariffs for different technologies, specifically in relation to larger scale installations. The viability of different technologies in the marketplace is highly variable and it is important that we see incentives for industry at the right level and not provide necessarily overgenerous tariffs which will see excessive profits being generated.
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