Lyn Dickinson, Pottsville
Every householder in NSW recently received a misleading leaflet from the National Party stating that ‘the federal carbon tax and green energy schemes add about $330 a year to a typical household electricity bill’. This equates to $6.35 per week.
According to the Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism, householders should expect an average increase of $3.30 per week as result of the carbon tax. To offset this and other cost-of-living increases associated with the carbon tax, householders are receiving on average $10.10 per week. No-one is currently out of pocket as a result of the carbon tax; in fact typical income earners are better off as the carbon-tax-related cost increases are less than $10.10 per week.
The remaining $3.05 per week is attributable to the installation of energy-saving devices. This is an investment and a long-term cost-saving measure to consumers, not irrecoverable expenditure as this leaflet suggests.
Electricity prices did not increase on 1 July 2012 when the carbon tax was introduced. They have been rising for several years as a result of gold-plating practices by greedy energy corporations who have been building unnecessary energy infrastructure and passing the costs on to consumers.
A price on carbon is designed to benefit, not punish, the community. All the experts agree that a market-based mechanism is the best and fairest way to reduce greenhouse emissions. I believe that the Liberal National Party are using the carbon tax as a political weapon to win votes. Let’s hope that voters do not have to face the massive increased costs associated with their direct action plan.
