ADJOURNMENT

Dr HAINES (Indi) (16:34): I rise today to speak on the Cheaper Home Batteries Program. I'm proud that a policy I first brought to this parliament in 2022 is now helping half a million Australian households and small businesses by cutting energy bills and putting more money back into people's budgets. Australian households and small businesses deserve reliable and affordable essential services like energy.

People are feeling the pressure of high living costs, and power bills are a big part of this. Rooftop solar has helped thousands power their appliances at next to no cost when the sun is shining. But people who invested in rooftop solar years ago are getting less return from solar feed-in tariffs than they used to.

Home batteries store that energy for when it's needed. The people of Indi sent me to parliament to get practical things done, and it was with their mandate that I pushed to include household batteries in the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme. I introduced my Cheaper Home Batteries Bill in 2022 and again in 2023.

I also met with the Minister for Climate Change and Energy multiple times to discuss the proposal, and I thank him for his constructive engagement over a long period of time. In 2025 the government adopted this policy—even keeping the name—and I congratulate them for doing so, because good ideas are always worth backing wherever they come from. I am now deeply concerned, though, by reports of battery cowboys rorting the system by abusing unlicensed contractors and falsely claiming batteries have been installed when they have not.

Last year I spoke with the Minister for Climate Change and Energy about door-to-door salespeople seeking to exploit the scheme. Rorting taxpayer money is a scourge, and any dodgy doorknockers and battery cowboys must absolutely be stamped out. The minister has said that 315 complaints have been made about the SRES; that's a very small proportion in the context of thousands of legitimate batteries successfully installed and reducing household energy costs.

Indi has installed 4,108 cheaper home batteries with more than 100,000 kilowatt hours of capacity; that's the third-highest take-up of cheaper home batteries in Victoria. Wodonga, Baranduda and surrounding communities have led the way, installing more than 900 batteries. Wangaratta and the King Valley together have installed more than 550, followed by 240 in Benalla, 180 in Beechworth and about 130 each in Mansfield, Euroa and surrounds.

As I often say in this place, many regional Australians are embracing the energy transition and helping to drive it. Every one of these batteries in Indi is a household or business sharing in the benefits of the transition, with lower power bills and more reliable and more secure power when they need it most. Peter, from Bright, is a great example.

His property is supplied by a single power line. When a tree falls or a storm damages that line, he and his neighbours lose their power. His water pump also stops, leaving him and his wife without running water.

Since installing a home battery, Peter can keep his fridge and water pump running when there's a blackout, and his quarterly energy bill has dropped from $1,100 to about $140 a quarter. That is a huge saving for a retiree on a fixed income. Peter's story is just one of thousands across Indi where home batteries are making a real difference.

Strong uptake shows that cheaper home batteries are a resounding success—but too many people still miss out. The next step is that the government must help renters and low-income households to access solar and battery options, so that they too can reduce their power bills and increase their energy security. Portable, low-power 'plug and play' battery and solar systems are increasingly common in Europe and the United States, and we should look at how these options could work safely here in Australia.

As the policy marks its first year, I congratulate the Prime Minister, the Minister for Climate Change and Energy and the people of my electorate of Indi, who championed cheaper home batteries. This program is a powerful example of the local impact and national influence in working together, as an Independent member of parliament with the people of Indi and with the government of the day, to achieve something that benefits the whole nation.