Lane Cove state member and NSW Minister for Energy, Anthony Roberts, is appealing against a decision of the electricity regulator to slash power prices.

The Australian Energy Regulator (AER) has recommended that power companies cut electricity prices to households and businesses by 10 percent before 1 July 2015 but the NSW Liberal Government is trying to stop them. In a submission to the AER, the NSW Liberal Government has appealed against the AER’s recommendation, instead arguing that electricity prices should rise by 8 percent.

Labor candidate for Lane Cove, Andrew Zbik, said today that “the residents of Lane Cove are dismayed that their own local member is deliberately setting out to not only stop a recommended price cut, but to increase power prices by 8 percent this year.”

“This is yet another example of the Baird Liberal Government’s insidious attack on the living standards of NSW residents. Power prices are a massive expense for electricity consumers in NSW, and just when a price cut is finally on the horizon, Anthony Roberts and the Liberals want to take it away.”

Labor’s Shadow Treasurer, Michael Daley and Shadow Minister for Energy, Adam Searle have said today that this is a blatant move by the Baird Liberal Government to make NSW’s public electricity assets more attractive for their sell-off. “It will be families and businesses in NSW that will ultimately pay the price for this strategy through higher power prices” Mr Daley said.

Andrew Zbik also said today that “this is the first strike on consumers as a result of the Liberal’s asset sales, but it won’t be the last. Not only are electricity prices on the rise thanks to Anthony Roberts’ call to increase them, but they will keep going up under the Baird Liberal Government’s friendless privatisation plan for NSW’s “poles and wires”.”

Labor is opposed to the sell off of NSW’s electricity network, which will leave a $1 billion hole in the NSW state budget.

“Whether you’re in East Ryde, Artarmon, St Leonards, Hunters Hill, Putney or anywhere else in the Lane Cove electorate, electricity costs are a huge part of the family budget and a direct call to increase electricity prices is the last thing you would expect from your local member”, Mr Zbik said.

“I’m calling on Liberal MP Anthony Roberts to stand up for households and small businesses and not just his big business mates, and do everything in his power to reduce and not increase power prices in NSW.”