The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal of NSW (IPART) has released findings that show households will be better off under the the Federal Government’s carbon pricing scheme, with the planned compensation associated with the legislation more than covering any potential price increases.

 

Recent analysis by AECOM and CSIRO, supported by The Climate Institute and consumer and welfare groups CHOICE and ACOSS, put the price of electricity bills at about 10 per cent higher this year with the enactment of the carbon price legislation.  IPART today found an average 9 per cent increase from the carbon price, equivalent to a less than $4 per week increase in household electric bills. 

 

“IPART has confirmed the CSIRO/AECOM price impact analysis and reinforced other factors like the investment in poles and wires are driving similar or greater increases without the compensation provided under the carbon price legislation,” said The Climate Institute CEO John Connor.

 

“Most importantly, the CSIRO research found the rate increases related to the price of carbon will be offset by government assistance in 9 out of 10 households, and most Australians will gain rather than lose, especially if they invest in energy efficiency measures for their homes.”

 

The CSIRO/AECOM research also found that: 

  • Australia’s carbon pollution price will add a mere 0.6 per cent to inflation in 2012-13. That is the equivalent to 6 cents on every $10.00 spent. In even simpler terms, that represents an extra 2  cents spent on bread and a litre of milk, 11 cents on a leg of lamb or 14 cents on a week’s worth of fruit and vegetables.
  • This price impact is less than a quarter of the impact of the GST, half the impact of previous mining boom and roughly equivalent to the price impacts of cyclones Larry and Yasi.
  • Climate impacts from extreme weather events like cyclones and bushfires could be 20 times the impact of the carbon price.

 

“IPART data is entirely consistent with independent and Treasury estimates which have been addressed in the carbon pricing package of pension increases and tax cuts enabled by making our biggest industries start to pay for their carbon pollution,” said Connor.