Electricity Privatisation Inquiry: submission writing guide
Recently the NSW Government signed off on privatising the State's
electricity system. The Upper house is to hold an enquiry into the sale.
Be heard: let the NSW Upper House Inquiry know what you think of the
sell-off
Submissions to the NSW Upper House Inquiry into the 'Gentrader
transaction' are being accepted until 15 January 2011.
DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY OF HOW TO WRITE A SUBMISSION HERE
Further details about the inquiry, including how to lodge your submission, are available at http://j.mp/gentrad.
That link should take you to the legislative council committee webpage which in part looks like:
The closing date for submissions is Friday, 14 January 2011. Prior to lodging your submission we recommend reading How to Make a submission (PDF), and for background reading, Standing Committees of the Legislative Council (PDF).
Written submissions may also be lodged by sending to:
The Director
General Purpose Standing Committee No. 1
Parliament House
Macquarie St
Sydney NSW 2000
Fax: (02) 9230 2981
Some points you might like to make about the sell-off:
- ♦ All power privatisations are bad for the economy, employment, household power bills and the environment.
- This power sell-off is particularly bad: profits from the sale of electricity are being handed over
- to the private sector, but many of the financial risks remain with the public.
- ♦ Reducing NSW's contribution to climate change will be much more difficult and
- expensive if the private sector has control of the generator outputs. The power industry
- creates 40% (60 million tonnes CO2 per year) of this state's greenhouse gas emissions.
- ♦ Household power bills will increase as the gentraders seek to make more profit.
- ♦ Jobs will be lost after the protection period expires. Call centre work will be sent overseas.
- ♦ NSW is losing a valuable income stream worth much more than the $5.3 billion sale price.
The assets that have been sold return $750 million a year which pays for teachers, nurses and
- hospitals. The structure of the sale (gentraders), uncertainty about the future of carbon prices
- and the brewing international economic storm have minimised the sale price.
- ♦ Secret deals to subsidise coal prices for the gentraders mean that NSW taxpayers will be
- footing the bill to pay for cheap fuel for the gentraders for years to come.
- ♦ The Keneally government has no mandate to sell the gentraders or the retailers. Privatisation
- was not mentioned during the last election.
- ♦ Opinion polls show that the people of NSW oppose electricity privatisation. Parliament has
- an obligation to tell the government they should cancel the contracts and keep all of the power
- industry in public hands.
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