Are we in fact benefiting from the Victorian Energy Efficiency Target (VEET) Scheme and ESS? http://t.co/tpn1RT8P5R pic.twitter.com/lHprSaFUfO — GMT Lighting (@GMTLighting) May 25, 2014
The recent announcement by the Victorian Government of the axing of the Victorian Energy Efficiency Target (VEET) scheme, which provides free energy efficient light bulbs and smart timers to households, is just another example of this Government’s unwillingness to tackle climate change if it does not suit their main backers, the big coal-fired generators, which provide most of the State’s electricity at present. It is all about protecting their market share, which has been falling because of the drop in demand for electricity due to the advancing of renewable technologies such as solar and wind and the efficiencies of appliances that the VEET scheme promoted. According to the Australian Energy Market Commission, the VEET scheme only added less than $12 to the average household bill last year and those who partook in the scheme would save about $70 every year from now on.
Why would anyone refuse to participate in this?
Over 26,000 energy efficient lights, stand-by power controllers and so on have been fitted to households in Morwell, Churchill and Traralgon up till now. The most enthusiastic up-takers of the scheme were households in lower social-economic areas and it will be these people who will stand to lose the most. That is apart from the 1700 VEET workers who will now lose their jobs. It does nothing to dispel the feeling, firmly implanted in the population after the Abbott Budget that Conservative Government’s just don’t care for the poorer sections of society. Just today, Bloomberg Financial analysts released a report that stated that once there is a critical mass of renewable energy in the supply, then the price of electricity drops dramatically. The decision of this Napthine Government is just delaying the day when we pay less for power and start to turn the corner in the fight against climate change.
Dan Caffrey Greens Candidate for Morwell
For further reading: http://www.theage.com.au/environment/conservation/government-pulls-plug-on-energy-efficiency-target-20140521-38ntx.htm
Click to access Victorian%20Energy%20Efficiency%20Target%20Regulations%20RIS.pdf
Daniel Caffrey for Morwell 