Tuesday, 13 August 2019

Questions without notice and ministers statements

Solar Homes package

Mr M O’BRIEN (Malvern—Leader of the Opposition) (14:00): My question is to the Minister for Solar Homes. John Grimes, CEO of the Smart Energy Council, has said about the solar energy rebate scheme:

It’s heartbreaking—one man is at his wit’s end with the business on the line, as well is his life savings and his house. He’s just sacked good loyal employees. That is what the whole industry is facing.

Despite there being many such examples, the minister has said:

The fact is this: this is a successful program that has surpassed all of our expectations.

How many more businesses will be destroyed, how many more jobs will be lost before the minister listens and fixes this mess that she has created?

Ms D’AMBROSIO (Mill Park—Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change, Minister for Solar Homes) (14:01): I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. We need to remember that when we talk about the Solar Homes program it is actually delivering a record number of installations to the industry, and it is delivering a record number of rebates to Victorian families, saving them—

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! I ask the Premier for his assistance in the smooth running of the house, and I ask the member for Warrandyte to direct his point of order through the Chair.

Mr R Smith: On a point of order, Speaker, after 24 seconds the minister has already told untruths. The amount of installs has actually halved. The minister should actually come out and tell the truth.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member will resume his seat. There is no point of order.

Ms D’AMBROSIO: I have been very clear about this, and we have been. Solar Homes is about putting power back in the hands of Victorian families who otherwise would not have been able to afford to access solar power, saving them on average $890 a year. Where we have also been very clear is that we have worked consistently and continued to work with the industry to assist them to adapt to the changing circumstances that they are facing.

Members interjecting.

Ms D’AMBROSIO: The fact remains, Speaker, that this is a highly successful program delivering record numbers of installations. When we talk about installations we are actually talking about work—

The SPEAKER: I ask the minister to resume her seat, and I ask members to my left to stop shouting across the chamber.

Mr M O’Brien: On a point of order relating to relevance, Speaker, my question was how many more businesses will be destroyed and how many more jobs will be lost. The minister has not turned her mind to that question, which is key because there are people out there who are literally losing their jobs because of this minister’s bungling. She needs to answer that question.

The SPEAKER: Order! The minister is being relevant to the question that has been asked.

Ms D’AMBROSIO: Speaker, thank you very much. Look, we have all been very clear, working with the industry and continuing to meet with them, and we have been very responsive to industry. Responsiveness includes the fact that we went from a system where in the first phase of the program rebates were released all at once, and they requested a release of rebates on a monthly basis. The fact remains that today there are far more installations in the system that are occurring right now, which equals work, than there were two financial years ago. The record speaks for itself. We will continue to work with the industry to assist in streamlining it and making it better, but let us be clear about what the focus of this scheme is—

The SPEAKER: Order! I ask the minister to resume her seat.

Mr R Smith: On a point of order, Speaker, if the minister is so confident of her figures, could she table the document that she is using—where she got these figures from? Could she table that document for members of the house?

The SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order.

Ms D’AMBROSIO: I refer those opposite to industry records—not government records, industry records—that tell us the number of installations. We have gone from a period of installations in 2017–18 that were over 31 000 in one financial year, jumping to a record in the last financial year, when our rebates started, to record installations of 54 500—

Members interjecting.

Ms D’AMBROSIO: From 31 000 to 54 000—absolutely.

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! Members on my right! Member for Sunbury!

Before calling the member for Warrandyte, I warn the member that he has had two points of order that have not been points of order. I ask him to make sure this point of order is a legitimate point of order.

Mr R Smith: Speaker, I cannot anticipate your ruling before I get up and make a statement.

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! I am simply warning the member for Warrandyte that he has had two strikes—three strikes and he will be out.

Mr R Smith: For what?

The SPEAKER: For raising frivolous—

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Gembrook will leave the chamber for the period of 1 hour.

Member for Gembrook withdrew from chamber.

Mr R Smith: Do I have a set number of points of order I can take?

The SPEAKER: Order! I will not tolerate the use of frivolous points of order during question time. Your point of order is?

Mr R Smith: The point of order is simply that the minister is quoting from a document in front of her, a chart that we can all see. Can she table that document as per the forms of the house?

The SPEAKER: Order! Is the minister quoting from a document or referring to notes?

Ms D’AMBROSIO: Speaker, I am clearly referring to my notes.

The SPEAKER: There is no point of order. The minister has concluded her answer.

Mr M O’BRIEN (Malvern—Leader of the Opposition) (14:07): The CEO of the Smart Energy Council, Mr Grimes, has described himself as counsellor in chief because of the pressures and anguish solar businesses have experienced as a result of this government’s rebate scheme. He has referred a number of solar business owners to Beyond Blue and Lifeline, as has the government’s own accreditation agency, the Clean Energy Council. Yet the minister has attacked solar installers for ‘poor business practices’. When will the minister stop blaming the victims of her botched solar scheme and just fix it?

Ms D’AMBROSIO (Mill Park—Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change, Minister for Solar Homes) (14:07): The Leader of the Opposition is absolutely wrong. Victorians are voting with their feet on this scheme. We have record numbers of people—

Members interjecting.

Mr M O’Brien: On a point of order, Speaker, I want to know: is the minister accusing me of lying or accusing John Grimes of lying when he says he is referring his members to Lifeline and Beyond Blue?

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr M O’Brien: Who is the minister saying is lying—me or John Grimes?

The SPEAKER: Order! I understand the point the Leader of the Opposition is raising, but it is not a point of order.

Ms D’AMBROSIO: We have been clear right from the beginning: our objective in this scheme is to make it easier for Victorians to get solar panels on their roof, reducing power bills. In the process of doing that we have made it absolutely clear that our objective is to ensure that quality and safety come first and foremost. We make absolutely no apology for insisting on that, because that is what Victorians expect good governments to do.