Question Time

Electricity Market

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:08): My question is to the Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy. Given the Premier's repeated claims that South Australia must, and I quote, 'go it alone on electricity', why did the minister specifically state that South Australia could not go it alone in the electricity market?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Treasurer, Minister for Finance, Minister for State Development, Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy) (14:09): The Premier, at the first press conference the day after the load shedding event, said those very words, that it would be very difficult for us to go it alone.

Mr Wingard interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Mitchell is called to order.

Mr Marshall: Want us to get the Hansard out?

The SPEAKER: The leader is call to order.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: For the leader's benefit, Hansard is not the only place the Premier speaks publicly about these events.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert is called to order.

Mr Marshall: That's only 24 hours ago.

The SPEAKER: The leader is warned.

Mr Pisoni interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Unley is called to order.

Mr Marshall interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The leader is warned for the second and the final time.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: The Premier said in his press conference, and publicly in other media, that we are bolted on to the national electricity system. It is very difficult to leave. What the Premier means by 'going it alone' is retaking our sovereignty in terms of the way the National Electricity Market works, which is a lot like what Sir Thomas Playford attempted to do when the Adelaide Electric Company refused to roll out electricity to regional areas of South Australia. Regional areas were not being connected to the grid because it was uneconomic. Sir Thomas decided that there would be an inquiry into the way they conducted themselves, and he retook South Australia's sovereignty about its power.

That sovereignty was lost with the privatisation of ETSA. The Premier is saying that we want our electricity system to work in the interest of all South Australians, not those who have purchased our assets in a privatisation deal that, of course, is used now to benefit their shareholders or the governments that own them. Electricity fundamentally is a public good. It belongs to the people of this state to go about their day-to-day business, whether it's enjoying their family homes, whether it's in trade or commerce or whether it's in education.

Every aspect of our lives is touched by this very important machine. It is a machine. It is the largest machine in Australia, yet some people think of it as a market or a commodity to be traded for profit by shareholders who own these assets. Our view is very different. Our view is that this commodity belongs to the people of South Australia, and what we're going to do is use every inch of our authority, everything we can, to retake our sovereignty, to make sure that we will decide the future of South Australia, not foreign-owned interests—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: —who own our assets because of a privatisation foisted on us by members opposite.

The SPEAKER: I call to order the members for Morialta and Davenport, and I warn the member for Finniss for the second and the last time.