Thursday, 18 August 2022

Northern Victoria Region

Ms MAXWELL (Northern Victoria) (12:42): (1930) My constituency question is to the Minister for Energy, regarding a triple-whammy shortage for constituents of mine in Rutherglen. Rutherglen has experienced three separate three-phase power outages in the last three weeks. The constituent who contacted me not only lost three days of income but had to pay staff and other outgoings. There was no EFTPOS for the whole town, and the local pharmacist could not dispense medication. For lost income of $3500 for just one day the maximum compensation my constituent can claim is $130. This represents only $7 per hour compensation, which covers only a third of the minimum hourly wage for just one employee. The government conducted a review of the Victorian electricity distributors guaranteed service level payment scheme back in 2015, but it gave no specific consideration to commercial operators. Will the government conduct a review of the scheme and ensure commercial businesses can receive appropriate compensation for interruptions to energy supply?