ENERGY EFFICIENCY RATINGS

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Leader of the Opposition) (14:43): I have a further supplementary question: will the minister also provide information as to what the final retail cost difference will be to first home buyers from a five-star energy efficient home to a now mandatory six-star energy efficient home?

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister Assisting the Premier in Public Sector Management) (14:43): It would obviously depend on the builder and the location. Even in relation to transportable homes, for example, there are three climate zones. Obviously, the most difficult to achieve, the six-star, are those in the more remote parts of the state, the Far North, where the temperature extremes are higher. For that sort of housing alone there would be different estimates about what might be required to bring houses to the six-star rating.

As I indicated in my answer, part of the way we get energy efficiency is with preventing energy loss through the floor of the house in winter. If a house is built on a slab it is much easier to achieve than with transportable housing, and that is one of the reasons why in those remote areas it has proved much more difficult for builders to reach the six-star rating without a very significant increase in costs. That is why we intend, in relation to that type of housing in those remote areas, working with them to find more affordable ways that we can get that type of housing to meet six-star.

If one were in the South-East it might well be easier to meet the ratings than in other parts of the state. Apart from climate orientation of buildings, there are many factors which determine the additional cost to go from five-star to six-star, and that is why it would be virtually impossible to get one definitive value. A number of different figures would answer that question, depending on the location of the house.