Electricity Industry Privatisation

Mr ANDREW STONER: My question is directed to the Premier. Given that the long-term result of his proposal to privatise electricity assets is likely to be job losses in regional and rural New South Wales, has he prepared a rural communities impact statement? If so, will he table it?

The SPEAKER: Order! Government members will cease interjecting.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: The issues of regional and rural employment have been taken into account and are outlined in the Government's response released—

[Interruption]

Why don't I table it? It was made public, you fool. It is called "A Government Response to Professor Anthony Owen's Inquiry". That was released in December and the Government has made further announcements, all on the public record—

[Interruption]

They are too lazy to read the Owen report, too lazy to read the Government's response.

The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Murray-Darling to order.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: They are too lazy to read any of the material that has been released.

Mr Andrew Stoner: Point of order: I refer to Standing Order 129. The question was very specific about rural communities impact statements, not the Owen report. Did you do one? Yes or no?

The SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: The impact on rural and regional workers and regional communities has been taken into account by the Government and has been the subject of a whole range of announcements the Government has made about securing the jobs of those workers in the electricity industry in regional and rural New South Wales. Detail number one: the Government's plan involves retaining 100 per cent ownership of the transmission and distribution network. Detail number two: the Government currently is undertaking an investment of $2 billion in upgrading—

[Interruption]

A desal plant, yes, that too, and I'm very proud to say so. The Government is undertaking an investment of $2 billion in upgrading our electricity, transmission and distribution network. As part of that there is an apprenticeship training guarantee that lasts for four years to ensure that the apprenticeship intake into our electricity network companies remains at current levels.

The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Murray-Darling to order for the second time.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: For country New South Wales that means about 58 apprentices each year. Detail number four: all of the transmission network distribution infrastructure, including the depots in rural and regional New South Wales, the transformers, the wires and poles, remain in government ownership. The Government will continue to be responsible for maintaining, owning, building and operating the network. That is the guarantee for regional and rural New South Wales. The Government's plans have absolutely no impact on 12,000 electricity workers—guaranteed. When it comes to the retail workforce, I note the motherhood statement in this House a year ago by the Leader of The Nationals, "Oh, jobs will have to be considered." He has not said a word since.

Retail workers have a choice. The choice is to move across to the new operator. If they do so, there is a transfer price and with that come job guarantees. If they choose not to move over, they remain employed by the Government. Why? Because the Government's plan does not involve selling any electricity company owned by the Government. Those workers can stay working for the Government in their workplace; whether it is the Coniston retail office, the one in Queanbeyan, Bathurst, Leeton or Port Macquarie, they get a choice.

The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Clarence to order. I call the member for Mount Druitt to order.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: Which is a lot more than the Opposition has detailed in a year. They have said nothing. The fifth point is this: the Government's plan to secure extra supply is all about, guess what? Building power stations. And when you build power stations you create jobs. You create jobs building the power stations and you create jobs operating the power stations. If the baseload power station is fired by coal—this might come as a surprise to the Leader of The Nationals—that might have a flow-on effect of creating jobs in coalmining, but we will not say that too loudly for the Leader of The Nationals. If it is powered by gas, guess what? It also creates jobs in the gas infrastructure to get it to the power station. No! It is all coming out now. When you invest money in building infrastructure it creates jobs. Unlike the last time that you lot were under the Greiner premiership, when you went about closing power stations.

Mr David Campbell: They closed Tallawarra.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: That is right. As the Minister for Police says, we all remember Tallawarra Power Station. Why did they close it? Was it an electricity issue? No. Was it a fuel issue with the coal? No. Was it an environmental issue? No. It was simply a cost-cutting exercise to close down the power station, sack the workers and close down the coalmines that supplied the power station. That was it. Guess what is happening at Tallawarra right now?

Mr David Campbell: A gas-fired power station is under construction.

The SPEAKER: Order! The Minister for Police will cease interjecting.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: As the Minister for Police and one of the local members said, under this Government a new power station is being built because of our carbon trading scheme. A gas-fired power station is being built at Tallawarra on the South Coast by a company called True Energy. Some 600 jobs have been created in building the power station. There will be about 50 new jobs in operating the power station and a company, hopefully in the Illawarra, will maintain the gas turbines off site. About 200 workers will be required to maintain the biggest gas turbines in Australia. As the Minister for Police said, the power station is under construction. I can provide the House with an update: It will be producing electricity in June of this year.

Mr Andrew Stoner: You said the private sector wouldn't invest in generators.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: It is a peaking plant, bonehead!

Mr Adrian Piccoli: Point of order: I think you know why I am taking a point of order. That is unruly language unbecoming of any member of Parliament, particularly the Premier. In the past I have been guilty of using unparliamentary language, for which I apologised, but in this case the Premier should withdraw his comment.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: I withdraw that comment. The Minister for Police correctly said that it is a 400-megawatt peaking plant. I can provide a further update to the House: The company proposes to lodge a development application to double the size of the plant. That plant will supply electricity to 250,000 households, with a 70 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, and will be Australia's most efficient power station. It is soon to be followed by another power station at Wagga Wagga. Guess what? That power station will create jobs, too. Jobs are created when infrastructure is built.