Morwell electorate storms
Martin CAMERON (Morwell) (09:38): I rise from a new seat today, Speaker, to keep you on your toes as we shuffle around in here. The storms that swept across the state last week damaged many homes and left thousands without power. The Latrobe Valley was not as badly affected as other areas, but my office received calls from people who have lost hundreds of dollars worth of food due to spoilage, and many cannot afford to replace it. One Morwell resident who is on a pension estimates they lost $1000 worth of fridge and freezer food during a 48-hour outage. They have been told by their energy retailer and AusNet that they are not eligible for any monetary compensation, only a $90 credit which will be on their next power bill. They have no food until their next pension payment.
People are slipping through the cracks. The state government support payment only applies for people who have been without power for seven days, but we must also consider our most vulnerable who are quite literally without food on the table. Janet, who may be an aunty of mine and who is in her late 80s, was telling me how she was in her electric recliner when the power went out. She was stuck in her chair for over an hour. I am trying not to smirk as I say it, but it took her over an hour to get up on her feet. She asked me the question: how many people would have been in the same boat as her?