Thursday, 5 February 2026

 Peter WALSH (Murray Plains) (09:56): I want to raise the plight of Paul Ford, a dairy farmer in my electorate. Paul bought three heat pump hot water services for his dairy washdown from Solar Spirit of Wheelers Hill last April. It was installed by the Powerwise Group, of the same address in Wheelers Hill. But he still cannot use these hot water systems, because the hot water is not hot enough to sterilise his dairy plant. So nearly 12 months on he still does not have a new hot water service. Out of frustration with Solar Spirit, Paul came to see me because they would not actually fix the mess they made. I rang Solar Spirit a number of times in December. There was one call back to Paul Ford but no action to actually fix the problem. I rang them again recently and said, ‘If you don’t do something about this, I’m going to name you in Parliament.’ So I am now naming Solar Spirit and the Powerwise Group for the shocking job they have done installing Paul’s hot water services. They should be taken off the list to claim credits under the Victorian energy upgrades program. I bet they claimed their certificate and got their money, but Paul has not got a hot water service. I say to Solar Spirit: do your job and fix the mess you have made, or I am going to keep raising this issue until you are taken off the list.