Come to the party
WITH a federal election in July, the top trifecta is the Libs, Labor and the Greens. Unfortunately, they are all duds.
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Our only hope of saving Australia would be an emerging new party. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.
Colin Field
Gundagai
Shining light on solar
I WOULD like to provide some clarification in relation to the letter “Hands off our solar” in the DA last week.
The NSW government announced in October 2014 that smart meters would be installed across NSW via a voluntary market-led roll-out.
This allows households to discuss available options with a range of retailers and choose the best solution for their home and needs. The NSW Solar Bonus Scheme was launched in 2010 and was always legislated to close on December 31, 2016.
lt has been successful in achieving its aim to encourage the uptake of renewable energy.
More than 146,000 households and small businesses have installed renewable energy generators under the scheme, earning a subsidy of either 60 cents or 20 cents per kilowatt-hour exported to the grid.
The government has for some time been actively working to prepare for customers to transition to other arrangements at the end of the scheme in December 2016. Actions taken include: Asking IPART to establish a benchmark unsubsidised feed-in tariff price for solar customers so they can compare retailer offers; establishing a framework for a voluntary roll-out of smart meters; introducing legislation to streamline regulatory arrangements for smart meter safety and technical requirements to ensure strong safety standards; writing to Solar Bonus Scheme customers; working with retailers and industry since 2015 to identify what needs to be done to assist households.
The government has contacted householders participating in the scheme to remind them of the planned closure of the scheme.
To continue to maximise the benefit of their rooftop solar panels, customers are encouraged to make contact with electricity retailers and choose the best option.
Under the current electricity rules, retailers may offer customers the opportunity to have a smart meter installed, but this is entirely voluntary.
In some cases, electricity retailers may offer smart meters free of charge to customers.
Kylie Hargreaves
Deputy secretary – NSW Resources & Energy
We’re all indigenous
RECENTLY, we have seen a deliberate appropriation and monopolisation of the word "indigenous" as referring to Aborigines only.
The dictionary definition of indigenous is "born in or natural to a country".
Therefore, the continued use of this word claiming that only Aborigines are indigenous to this country excludes the millions of other Australians who, along with their ancestors, were born here.
This is a deliberate attempt to give preferential treatment to Aborigines as opposed to the rest.
It concerns me that shortly politicians will be drafting legislation to alter the preamble and/or the body of the Australian Constitution claiming that Aborigines are the only true indigenous people of this country, thus creating and dividing Australians into two classes of people and implying that those not of Aboriginal descent are a lesser breed.
When there is an undoubted appeal and High Court judgement to this use of the word indigenous in the constitution on the grounds that it applies to all people born here, it will be interesting to see the "creative" judges turning themselves inside out and referring to the Acts Interpretation Act in trying to justify its limited usage.