STATEMENTS BY SENATORS

Senator DAVID POCOCK (Australian Capital Territory—Independent ACT Whip) (13:00): I want to bring attention to the sudden closure of the AEIOU Foundation, including its centre here in the ACT, and the impact that this has had and will have on children in our community and in communities across Australia. This is, or was, a specialised centre for children with autism—gone overnight because the NDIS has refused to provide the funding children with autism need to access the centre.

These are young children at a critical stage of development. When those supports are disrupted, the consequences are immediate and, in some cases, they will be long lasting. For parents, this has meant scrambling to find alternatives in a system that is already stretched.

Specialist services are limited, particularly here in the ACT. Parents are waiting 18 months to get an appointment with the Child Development Service, and there are almost no mainstream services that provide the level of specialised support many families need. Let me read an email I received from Henry: 'My son is now without care, without therapy and, worst of all, has no hope of accessing the one service that had the best potential for improving his life.

He can't access the special needs school in Canberra for at least another year, and this is only if there is sufficient space available. The local special needs school, Cranleigh, had no preschool program this year, for example, and no spaces in year 1. So we're left trying to access mainstream child care, where they either can't accept him or, if they can, it's without the appropriate accommodation for his needs.' If this is an intended outcome of the NDIS reforms currently underway then it's the wrong outcome.

This will have an impact on the development and wellbeing of these children, and this is something we urgently need to grapple with. If this sort of cut is due to wanting to spend less money then we've got it all wrong, because we know that early intervention and these sorts of supports for young Australians and their families actually save us money in the long term.

The conflict in the Middle East has again showed us how quickly conflicts overseas can drive up energy prices here in Australia. Australians are now paying two bucks fifty or more for petrol and diesel, and much more in some regional areas. Businesses are facing higher transport costs, and many farmers are grappling with both a supply and a cost challenge.

Not long ago, we sought gas and electricity prices soar following Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine. What sits behind this is a truth that we must confront: fossil fuel prices are incredibly volatile, and they're also inflationary. Despite being a major exporter of energy, Australia's still heavily reliant on imported petrol and diesel.

We know that the most effective way to reduce our reliance on global energy markets is to electrify our homes, our businesses and our transport sector. Every time a household switches to electrical appliances, installs solar and batteries or drives an electric vehicle, they reduce our exposure to volatile and unpredictable global fossil fuel markets. And the benefits are substantial.

In the ACT, modelling shows that full electrification could save households around $5,000 each year. Five thousand bucks a year is a lot more than the promised $275 reduction in electricity bills. Renewable energy can't be blockaded.

We haven't seen conflict in the Middle East over an abundance of sunshine. It's not controlled by other countries. So we need to both crack on with the transition and be clear eyed about it.

In regional and rural areas liquid fuels, particularly diesel, will be needed in significant amounts for many years to come, but in our cities we can and must electrify now. This is the opportunity for Australia to unlock cost savings for households, particularly low-income households, people on fixed incomes. What we need is the political will from the government and the coalition.