Proposed electricity reform lacks vision

Energy Minister Mike Nahan has once again proven his incompetence by yesterday announcing a ‘reform program’ for electricity generation in Western Australia that fails to even mention renewable energy.

Meanwhile, around the country and, even more so, around the world renewable energy uptake is being included at every level of strategic long-term and short-term planning.

The WA Greens have labelled the government’s proposed electricity reform program as archaic and short-sighted and are calling on the Energy Minister to resign for consistently failing to widen the scope of his ‘vision’ past economic factors.

WA Greens Spokesperson on energy and climate change Robin Chapple MLC said a lack of leadership on this issue was the state’s government’s greatest folly.

“The premier needs to stop palming all responsibility to tackle climate change – humanity’s greatest threat – off to the federal government,” he said.

“Climate change will affect everybody and is therefore everybody’s responsibility; West Australians are not magically exempt.

“For all this government’s rhetoric on the economy they have failed to notice that proper investment in the renewable energy industry will not only help to mitigate the impending consequences of climate change, but will generate thousands of secure jobs.

“The fossil fuel heyday is over and the mining boom is slowing yet the state government continues to stand around with their heads in the sand.”

Mr Chapple said the state government needed to ditch this electricity reform paper, revisit the Greens Energy 2029 vision, and start again.

“It’s time Colin Barnett and Mike Nahan showed some real leadership and invested in the future of West Australians,” he said.

“Climate change in Western Australia is a lived reality that is already costing jobs and threatening any kind of long term security for the dinosaur industries you love so dearly.”

For comment please contact Robin Chapple on 0409 379 263 or 9486 8255.

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