Kelvin Thomson response to Herald Sun Article ‘Power price rises sting consumers’ 1/2/11

Kelvin Thomson response to Herald Sun Article ‘Power price rises sting consumers’ 1/2/11

I do not agree that electricity companies should charge low income earners, pensioners, and working families up to $360 per year- $1 a day- for power before they even use any.

The reality is that consumers should only be paying for the electricity they actually consume. If private electricity operators have to augment their poles and wires as a result of increasing population, they should recover this money from the new consumers and the property developers who are driving and profiting from this population growth.

I think it’s high time pensioners and other household electricity consumers got some relief from ever rising electricity prices. I think regulatory authorities should limit electricity price rises for household consumers to the percentage amount by which pensions rise.  This would give pensioners and fixed-income earners some badly needed respite.

Kelvin Thomson MP

Federal Member for Wills

Tuesday 1st February