WA households and businesses impacted by prolonged power and telecommunications outages in January are being urged to sign a petition calling on the Cook Labor Government to investigate the matter and deliver appropriate support.
Leader of The Nationals WA Shane Love MLA said the petition was necessary after the State Government had failed to deliver a promised support package to businesses more than one month after the outages.
“Over one month after the blackout, which lasted for several days during a heatwave, businesses in the Goldfields, Wheatbelt and Perth Hills are still awaiting detail around the Government’s support package,” Mr Love said.
“A survey undertaken by the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Chamber of Commerce and Industry has found the average loss to each business was $16,786 in lost revenue, wages, and stock which had to be thrown out.
“The total impact across regional WA as a result of these outages is estimated to be in excess of $10 million.”
The petition, which is being supported by Goldfields business owners Ashok Parekh and Graham McGarry, calls on the State Government to review their support following extended outages to ensure impacted households and businesses are fairly compensated.
“Other jurisdictions, such as New South Wales, offer compensation schemes far greater than a one-off $120 payment which would not even come close to restocking the value of your fridge and freezer after an extended outage.
“The Cook Labor Government boasts a $3.7 billion budget surplus, propped up by a $223 million dividend from Western Power,” Mr Love said. “They have significant capacity to support impacted businesses but have failed to do so.”
Candidate for Central Wheatbelt Lachlan Hunter said the petition also calls on the State Government to undertake an independent inquiry into the January 2024 outages.
“This is necessary to not only look at the response from the State Government and Western Power, but also Telstra, whose network was significantly disrupted by the outages,” Mr Hunter said.
“Over 30 communities were left isolated and unable to contact Triple Zero during these outages, many in the Central Wheatbelt, including Bakers Hill, Toodyay and Wundowie.
“The Cook Labor Government has failed to explain why the 2022 Christmas Power outages, which largely impacted Perth, was worthy of an independent review, but a major outage across several days in the regions is not,” Mr Hunter said.
The petition will be the first ever e-petition launched in the Legislative Assembly and can be signed online here:
https://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/Parliament/LAePetitions.nsf/petitions/24-0001
