01.Energy is an issue for everyone
About the Energy at Home conference:
The way we use energy has become a hot issue. That’s why CHOICE joined with the Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS) on 13 September 2011 to bring key people together to shine the light on energy solutions and opportunities.
The conference, held in Parliament House in Canberra, brought together people who speak on behalf of consumers, the energy industry, academics, think tanks and government. The background paper highlights some of the main energy issues we face.
Information from the conference. You can access various presentations:
Paul Simshauser from AGL Energy provided insights into why energy prices are rising (Audio PowerPoint)
Matt Levey from CHOICE spoke on how to bring about fairer energy prices, better products and empowered consumers (Audio Paper)
Clare Petre, the NSW Energy and Water Ombudsman, spoke about marketing issues, consumer expectations and pricing issues (Audio PowerPoint)
Tony Westmore from ACOSS spoke about the essential nature of energy, affordability issues and how these issues could be addressed (PowerPoint)
Lauren Solomon from the Clean Energy Council spoke about the need for energy efficiency. (Audio PowerPoint)
Rod Sims, Chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) spoke about the need for investment in electricity networks to take into account what is a fair charge for consumers, the ACCC’s focus on energy marketing and the AER’s role in removing consumer confusion (Audio)
Chris Dunstan from the Institute for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology Sydney (UTS) spoke about opportunities in demand management and the role of collaboration (Audio PowerPoint)
Iain MacGill from the Centre for Environment and Energy Markets (UNSW) spoke about the changing context for energy policies, energy efficiency and the role of regulation in driving change (Audio PowerPoint)
John Pierce, Chairman of the Australian Energy Market Commission, spoke about the AEMC’s role in relation to bringing about change. (Audio PowerPoint)
Tony Wood from the Grattan Institute spoke about a number of energy issues, including the need for clear objectives when setting policy that aims to reduce price pressures. (Audio)
What will CHOICE be doing?
Energy is one of CHOICE’s major campaigns, which means we will continue to push for consumers to be the focus of energy planning in Australia. You can tell us what you think by emailing (campaigns@choice.com.au) Katrina Lee at CHOICE.