Australians are paying far too much for electricity and gas because big energy companies are profiteering at our expense. We need cheap, reliable energy for everyone.
Australians are paying far too much for electricity and gas – not because of supply shortages, but because big energy companies are profiteering at our expense.
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The average electricity consumer is paying enormous margins on an essential household utility, contributing to record energy company profits.
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Gas companies are marking record profits – despite Australia having some of the cheapest gas in the world, energy companies export it at record profits while making Australians, who own the gas, pay global prices or higher.
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All the while, fossil fuel companies still benefit from billions in taxpayer-funded subsidies.
The major parties are captured by energy and resource companies, who use political donations and lobbying so politicians act in their interests rather than the public interest. This has stunted energy policy for decades.
We need cheap, reliable energy
Regulate the gas market
Australia doesn’t have a gas supply problem; it has a gas export problem.
Australian gas should not be cheaper in Japan than it is here at home. The market rules aren’t working for Australians – or for a credible transition to net zero.
I have spoken out about this repeatedly, including through a Private Members' Motion on effective gas market regulation, which drew support across the chamber, including from former senior Cabinet minister Ed Husic MP.
One week later, the Government moved to revisit gas market settings.
Gas extracted in Australia belongs first and foremost to Australians. We should share in the benefits through functional resource rent taxes, and ensure a ready supply of available and affordable gas for households.
Introduce a permanent national gas reserve and windfall profit taxes ensuring:
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A portion of Australia's gas reserved for domestic use, preventing companies from exporting abundant gas while charging Australians inflated global rates.
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Price caps on domestic gas sales so consumers aren't gouged by false scarcity.
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A windfall profits tax on excessive LNG exports, to ensure all Australians share in the benefit of one-off extraction of non-renewable resources.
Home batteries
Energy storage is critical in the clean energy economy. Without it, excess solar power is wasted, and households remain at the whim of gas and electricity giants for peak-hour grid electricity at inflated prices. To seize the advantages of our natural solar assets, we need to invest in true energy independence for households and businesses.
I campaigned for a national home battery program, with up-front incentives scaled to the size of the battery installed. I'm pleased the Government has implemented this policy. The Cheaper Home Batteries Program has seen more than half a million systems installed, and the target is now 2 million by 2030. It's working: bills are coming down, payback periods have shortened, and a flatter evening peak is lowering wholesale prices for everyone — including people who will never own a battery.
What I'm focused on now is reaching the households still locked out. Renters and apartment residents can't install a battery on someone else's property or a shared roof space. A program this successful should not stop at owner-occupiers.
Electrify our homes
Burning fossil gas for cooking, water, and space heating is expensive and a major trigger for asthma and respiratory illnesses. It keeps us dependent on gas companies and vulnerable to price volatility. The Australian Energy Market Commission has found that home electrification will cut household energy bills by thousands of dollars per year. And with states like Victoria already mandating all-electric new homes, we're poised to create national standards that will keep prices lower and people healthier.
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Require all new-build homes to be fully electric to break our dependence on gas.
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Support the installation of efficient appliances, including heat pumps, to immediately cut energy use and help store solar energy.
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Work with state governments to allow vehicle-to-grid charging so we can unlock the fullest benefit of EVs, including as "batteries on wheels."
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Introduce energy labelling for both rental and for-sale properties so buyers and tenants have full transparency on running costs.
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Accelerate the roll-out of the Household Energy Upgrades program and other relevant government initiatives, prioritising social, community, and rental housing where the need is greatest.
Crack down on energy price-gouging
Strengthen ACCC oversight and impose penalties for price gouging, ensuring:
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Retail energy companies are prevented from charging excessive mark-ups on essential utilities like gas and electricity, especially for customers on multi-year market offer contracts.
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Transparent wholesale pricing, so customers know how much retailers are inflating their costs – regardless of whether they are on a fixed price or demand-charge contract.
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Regulation of network charges, preventing power companies from overcharging households to subsidise business discounts.
As your independent member for Bradfield, I'm fighting for a resource taxes and a national gas reservation to guarantee low-cost energy, expanding home electrification to put control back in the hands of consumers, and ending fossil fuel subsidies to invest in cheaper, cleaner power.
Below you'll find the work I've been doing on energy security — in Parliament, in the media, and here in Bradfield.