Dean Winter MP, Labor Member for Franklin, 11 December 2022
Liberals pay Brighte Capital $3.3 million to administer Energy Saver Loan Scheme
In yet another indictment of the State Government’s Energy Saver Loan Scheme, government tenders have revealed the Liberals are paying a Brighte Capital $3.3 million just to administer the scheme.
In addition, after announcing in Parliament that he had invited solar installers to meet with him for crisis talks after Labor revealed around 90% of Tasmanian installers had been locked out of the scheme, Guy Barnett failed to show up for the meeting. There remains no resolution for the red tape nightmare that has plagued the scheme.
Labor has already revealed serious concerns about Brighte, after an ABC investigation last year showed vulnerable Australians, including pensioners in regional towns, were being sold overpriced solar systems, costing nearly double their worth. Brighte was financing and profiting from those deals.
The attempt to provide additional protections for recipients of the scheme led the government to require Clean Energy Council (CEC) retailer accreditation of Tasmanian small businesses wishing to participate in the scheme.
But the accreditation requirements have stopped 90 per cent of Tasmanian installers from being able to participate in the scheme. Brighte Capital is actively referring Tasmanian customers to mainland contracts and local businesses and workers are missing out.
With so many concerns about the scheme, taxpayers have every right to question whether paying Brighte $3.3 million to administer the scheme is money well spent.
The Minister Guy Barnett has already presided over a 12 per cent power price rise, exacerbating the cost-of-living crisis affecting thousands of Tasmanians and prices are expected to go up by another 20 to 25 per cent next year.
And yet, Mr Barnett and the rest of the Liberals refuse to support Labor’s plan to cap power prices next year, which would save the average household around $500 a year.
With prices expected to go up by between 20 and 25 per cent next year, the Minister’s handling of this scheme shows he continues to put struggling Tasmanians last on his list of priorities.
