❓ Ms. Rowe asks about Synergy's hardship support during COVID-19 recovery. The Minister details various government and Synergy initiatives, criticising the opposition's stance on debt collection and highlighting past disconnection rates.
AnsweredQoN 373Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
SYNERGY — HARDSHIP SUPPORT
373. Ms C.M. ROWE to the Minister for Energy:
I refer to the McGowan Labor
government's commitment to supporting Western Australians facing
hardship, particularly as the state recovers from the economic impacts of the
COVID-19 pandemic.
(1) Can the
minister outline to the house how Synergy is supporting those Western Australians
who are doing it tough and helping prevent them from being disconnected?
(2) Can the
minister advise the house whether he is aware of anyone who believes the
government should not support struggling Western Australians?
373. Ms C.M. ROWE to the Minister for Energy:
I refer to the McGowan Labor
government's commitment to supporting Western Australians facing
hardship, particularly as the state recovers from the economic impacts of the
COVID-19 pandemic.
(1) Can the
minister outline to the house how Synergy is supporting those Western Australians
who are doing it tough and helping prevent them from being disconnected?
(2) Can the
minister advise the house whether he is aware of anyone who believes the
government should not support struggling Western Australians?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I
am very pleased to answer the question from the member for Belmont. I know her
deep commitment to helping people in hardship. I know that is one of the
motivations that led her to this place.
Synergy
has been prioritising hardship support over the time that the McGowan
government has been in power. Last year, we saw a range of COVID supports that
helped people in hardship. We saw the $600 account offset. We also saw
the doubling of the energy assistance payment from $305.25, which meant that
the lowest income earners in Western Australia got $1 210.50 worth of free
electricity from the government of Western Australia during 2020. The
government has reformed the hardship utility grant scheme program, so that
rather than helping Synergy, it helps people in need. We have introduced a household
energy efficiency scheme, which is mirrored on a program run by the former
Gallop and Carpenter government, but it was abandoned by the Liberal Party when
it was in power. We are also implementing the smart energy for social housing
program, and that has seen significant bill reductions for people in social
housing.
Synergy
continues to work hard through the Keeping Connected program, which is
in-person outreach to its customers. Synergy is now advertising, inviting
customers who are having trouble with their bills to speak directly to it, so
rather than the first problem being a bill that customers cannot handle, they
are inbound to Synergy to get help from the range of assistance that it can
provide. Synergy has been working with financial counsellors and it has created
an online portal, which is a really major reform. It allows the financial
counsellors to see exactly what is happening with the Synergy billing system.
It has led to the Financial Counsellors' Association of Western Australia writing to me to congratulate Synergy
on the work it is doing with financial counsellors to help people in
hardship. We have seen the government fund additional case managers in Synergy starting in July last year. Seven of the
11 dedicated managers are already on board and we are already seeing
excellent results. They have worked with the 1 600 people in most hardship and
we have seen 430 of those—over a quarter—already graduate so
that they can now support themselves without needing
additional assistance. We have also seen Synergy focus on family violence. We
know that one of the problems that
many people in hardship have is that they are the victims of domestic violence;
they have been subject to coercive control and have been left with
debts. I am very proud of the work that Synergy is doing there to help people
in that terrible situation who are suffering from family violence.
The
member asks who is not supporting this action. I was very surprised on Friday
to hear that the member for Cottesloe does not support this action. The member
for Cottesloe went on radio and said that it was shocking that the Labor government is working with Synergy
to do all these things. He said that it was shocking that we are not sending in
the debt collectors, that we are not just taking a financial approach to this
and that we are actually working with
customers to make sure that their life can handle the situation that they are
in, because we care for people in
that situation. I do not go on radio saying that it is shocking that no debt
collectors are being sent out to the people of this state. It is no wonder that
that is the attitude of the member for Cottesloe, because the last time the
Liberal Party was in government, disconnections went up by 86.2 per cent.
am very pleased to answer the question from the member for Belmont. I know her
deep commitment to helping people in hardship. I know that is one of the
motivations that led her to this place.
Synergy
has been prioritising hardship support over the time that the McGowan
government has been in power. Last year, we saw a range of COVID supports that
helped people in hardship. We saw the $600 account offset. We also saw
the doubling of the energy assistance payment from $305.25, which meant that
the lowest income earners in Western Australia got $1 210.50 worth of free
electricity from the government of Western Australia during 2020. The
government has reformed the hardship utility grant scheme program, so that
rather than helping Synergy, it helps people in need. We have introduced a household
energy efficiency scheme, which is mirrored on a program run by the former
Gallop and Carpenter government, but it was abandoned by the Liberal Party when
it was in power. We are also implementing the smart energy for social housing
program, and that has seen significant bill reductions for people in social
housing.
Synergy
continues to work hard through the Keeping Connected program, which is
in-person outreach to its customers. Synergy is now advertising, inviting
customers who are having trouble with their bills to speak directly to it, so
rather than the first problem being a bill that customers cannot handle, they
are inbound to Synergy to get help from the range of assistance that it can
provide. Synergy has been working with financial counsellors and it has created
an online portal, which is a really major reform. It allows the financial
counsellors to see exactly what is happening with the Synergy billing system.
It has led to the Financial Counsellors' Association of Western Australia writing to me to congratulate Synergy
on the work it is doing with financial counsellors to help people in
hardship. We have seen the government fund additional case managers in Synergy starting in July last year. Seven of the
11 dedicated managers are already on board and we are already seeing
excellent results. They have worked with the 1 600 people in most hardship and
we have seen 430 of those—over a quarter—already graduate so
that they can now support themselves without needing
additional assistance. We have also seen Synergy focus on family violence. We
know that one of the problems that
many people in hardship have is that they are the victims of domestic violence;
they have been subject to coercive control and have been left with
debts. I am very proud of the work that Synergy is doing there to help people
in that terrible situation who are suffering from family violence.
The
member asks who is not supporting this action. I was very surprised on Friday
to hear that the member for Cottesloe does not support this action. The member
for Cottesloe went on radio and said that it was shocking that the Labor government is working with Synergy
to do all these things. He said that it was shocking that we are not sending in
the debt collectors, that we are not just taking a financial approach to this
and that we are actually working with
customers to make sure that their life can handle the situation that they are
in, because we care for people in
that situation. I do not go on radio saying that it is shocking that no debt
collectors are being sent out to the people of this state. It is no wonder that
that is the attitude of the member for Cottesloe, because the last time the
Liberal Party was in government, disconnections went up by 86.2 per cent.
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