Page 2802 - Week 10 - Tuesday, 13 September 1994
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Bearing that in mind, the States and the Commonwealth now, in my view, have no alternative but for the Commonwealth to acknowledge the right of the citizens of the ACT to equity in the Snowy and, indeed, for fair compensation to the Territory until such time as that electricity reform within the system is implemented. I present a copy of this statement, and I move:
That the Assembly takes note of the paper.
MRS CARNELL (Leader of the Opposition) (3.46): Certainly, there are a number of points that Mr Lamont has brought up that the Opposition totally agrees with. We agree with him that the Federal Labor Government has let down the people of the ACT on this important issue that is potentially going to cost the people of the ACT very dearly. In fact, the cost is possibly as much as $100 per annum for every household in the ACT after 1 July next year. In fact, the cost could be substantially higher than that, as Mr Lamont is aware.
Mr Lamont: It is not very likely.
MRS CARNELL: It could be substantially higher than that. One of the things that Mr Lamont failed to tell the Assembly is that when the corporatisation occurs on 1 July next year - something that the Chief Minister agreed to on a number of occasions; in fact, the Chief Minister agreed to the date not in 1991 but early this year, when it was absolutely obvious that there were going to be problems with the national grid and the speed with which the national grid was going to come to fruition - even when the national grid comes into place there is every chance that the gap between the $38m, $20m or $25m - whichever figure you believe - and the amount that ACTEW can pick up by buying on the grid at the best possible price could easily be as high as $10m, which is $100 per household. That is after the national grid comes in.
Mr Lamont shakes his head at that. Unfortunately, those are the sorts of figures that are actually coming from the industry. On the best possible scenario, we potentially could be looking at $50 a household; but more than likely, as the industry says, even when the national grid comes on line in the ACT we will be $100 per household worse off. Why? Because the Federal Labor Government has let down the people of the ACT.
Mr Lamont: Your Federal counterparts supported that position.
MRS CARNELL: They are not in government, Mr Lamont. It is your mob, and you have not - - -
Mr Lamont: Mr Kaine supported the process.
MRS CARNELL: Nobody has.
Mr Lamont: Yes, he has. In 1991, Mr Kaine, as Chief Minister, supported the process.
MRS CARNELL: The issue is not - - -
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