❓ Mr Blayney asks the Minister for Energy to increase Western Power outage compensation following long-term blackouts in Geraldton, referencing a previous government initiative. The Minister acknowledges the issue, highlights the funding source for compensation, and states they are considering options.
AnsweredQoN 130Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
WESTERN POWER —
BLACKOUT COMPENSATION — GERALDTON
130. Mr I.C. BLAYNEY to the Minister for Energy:
I refer to the spate of long-term
power blackouts in the Geraldton region, and I thank the minister for attending
the forum there last week. Will the minister follow the lead of the previous
government, which in 2012 made a special order that Western Power double outage
compensation to $160 to help struggling families inconvenienced by extensive
electricity dropouts?
BLACKOUT COMPENSATION — GERALDTON
130. Mr I.C. BLAYNEY to the Minister for Energy:
I refer to the spate of long-term
power blackouts in the Geraldton region, and I thank the minister for attending
the forum there last week. Will the minister follow the lead of the previous
government, which in 2012 made a special order that Western Power double outage
compensation to $160 to help struggling families inconvenienced by extensive
electricity dropouts?
AnswerView source ↗
I
was pleased to go to Geraldton the other day; it was a very engaging audience.
I was also pleased to be able to speak personally to a number of the
attendees at the event afterwards. Of course, I was also pleased, at the
invitation of Hon Darren West and Hon Laurie Graham, to meet with the Mayor and
CEO of the City of Greater Geraldton beforehand.
We had a great discussion about working together. I was very pleased with the
response from the mayor that, since I went up to Mullewa recently, they
had found Western Power to be much more engaged in providing support to their
questions and challenges in Geraldton, and I am pleased that I was able to pass
that information back to the Western Power staff who were in Geraldton for the
meeting convened by the council.
I am not quite sure when the member
says that his government doubled the outage compensation. It is true that
Western Power sometimes pays more than $80 to people affected by extended
outages, but that is a discretionary position
for Western Power. As the member has pointed out in the media, there has not
been an increase in the $80 figure since the last time Labor was in
government, and as I assured the audience the other day, we are considering
that, and I look forward to meeting with Western Power in the next couple of
weeks to further consider our options around that.
I
have to make something clear to people: that payment is made out of the income
of Western Power. Western Power's only income is from the users
of the electricity system. This is something that the shadow Treasurer does not
always understand. None of the costs and expenses of Western Power is paid by
the budget of Western Australia; they are paid by the energy consumers of Western
Australia. At the moment several million dollars—I do not have the figure right in front of me—has been
paid out as compensation for unplanned outages. If there is to be an increase in that compensation, or payment, it will have to come from other users of the
electricity system. There is a balance to be drawn which is, I imagine, why the
former government did not increase the $80 payment over the eight and a half
years it was in power.
was pleased to go to Geraldton the other day; it was a very engaging audience.
I was also pleased to be able to speak personally to a number of the
attendees at the event afterwards. Of course, I was also pleased, at the
invitation of Hon Darren West and Hon Laurie Graham, to meet with the Mayor and
CEO of the City of Greater Geraldton beforehand.
We had a great discussion about working together. I was very pleased with the
response from the mayor that, since I went up to Mullewa recently, they
had found Western Power to be much more engaged in providing support to their
questions and challenges in Geraldton, and I am pleased that I was able to pass
that information back to the Western Power staff who were in Geraldton for the
meeting convened by the council.
I am not quite sure when the member
says that his government doubled the outage compensation. It is true that
Western Power sometimes pays more than $80 to people affected by extended
outages, but that is a discretionary position
for Western Power. As the member has pointed out in the media, there has not
been an increase in the $80 figure since the last time Labor was in
government, and as I assured the audience the other day, we are considering
that, and I look forward to meeting with Western Power in the next couple of
weeks to further consider our options around that.
I
have to make something clear to people: that payment is made out of the income
of Western Power. Western Power's only income is from the users
of the electricity system. This is something that the shadow Treasurer does not
always understand. None of the costs and expenses of Western Power is paid by
the budget of Western Australia; they are paid by the energy consumers of Western
Australia. At the moment several million dollars—I do not have the figure right in front of me—has been
paid out as compensation for unplanned outages. If there is to be an increase in that compensation, or payment, it will have to come from other users of the
electricity system. There is a balance to be drawn which is, I imagine, why the
former government did not increase the $80 payment over the eight and a half
years it was in power.
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