Time for some answers from National on power
Grant ROBERTSON
Deputy Leader
28 April
2013
MEDIA STATEMENT
Time for some answers from National on
power
National needs to stop its political
huffing and puffing, and debate the real issues like how to
bring down power prices and the lack of a competitive
electricity market, says Labour’s Deputy Leader Grant
Robertson.
"Steven Joyce and the rest of the
National Party have spent more than a week throwing out
hysterical political insults in response to the release of
the New Zealand Power policy. But they have failed to
debate the core issues- are New Zealanders being
over-charged for their power, and if so what is National
going to do about it?
"It’s fascinating that Mr
Joyce devoted most of his speech at a National Party
conference to political slogans and attacks. He is clearly
spooked by a policy that will see consumers and small
businesses finally get a fair deal.
"I challenge
Steven Joyce to actually debate the facts, and answer some
questions about the electricity system. Here are some
starters.
“Why have prices continued to rise
after the Wolak Report identified that the big four power
companies had taken $4.3 billion of super profits from
consumers?
“Why is he prepared to accept a
continuation of residential power prices going up at twice
the rate of inflation and having the second highest gap
between residential and industrial prices in the OECD?
“Why, in a country that produces so much of its
electricity through low cost sources such as hydro, do New
Zealanders get less and less benefit from
that?
“Why is he prepared to continue to accept
an unfair pricing system that sees power companies taking
the benefit of free water and putting it onto their balance
sheet, while consumers pay more and
more?
“Fundamentally, National knows that New
Zealanders are being over-charged for their electricity.
That's why it insists on playing the man rather than the
ball.
“While, National is prepared to continue
with the failed policies inherited from Max Bradford, Labour
has a model that will see prices come down, and establish a
competitive retail market where it will be possible to make
a fair rate of return, but not the super profits of the
past," Grant Robertson
said.
ENDS