The NSW Government has lost their grip on electricity privatisation and in a desperate attempt to hold on to the mere possibility of getting their plans through, the Premier and the Treasurer have agreed to the demands of the NSW Liberal party rather than negotiating with their own party or the workers potentially effected by their plans. Last week the NSW government passed the Auditor General (supplementary powers) Bill 2008 in Parliament. The legislation will provide the powers needed by the Auditor General to conduct a review into the proposed sale at the request of the NSW Liberal Party. Parliament will rise again this week and will not resume until September.
Yesterday the NSW Government distributed a Press Release outlining how they see the NSW Power Sale taking place. The press release identifies time frames over the next 18 months and also identifies a potential order to their proposal.
The catalyst for the press release is to provide the necessary detail for the NSW Auditor General to conduct his review requested by the NSW Liberal Party. The events of the last 24 hours still need to be assessed with the back drop of the NSW Government not having the power within their own party to have their plans passed through Parliament. The NSW Liberal Party have indicated that the report itself does not guarantee their support either.
In conjunction with yesterdays Press Release, the NSW Government have also been distributing Employee Information Kits specific to each organisation. The USU will provide a detailed report outlining the many concerns we have with the document and the lack of adequate employment guarantee’s contained within it.
It is important to remember that the NSW Government still have the same challenges in attempting to get their proposal through Parliament and that there are no guarantees that this will occur. It is by no means a “done deal”. The Stop the Sell-off campaign has been extremely successful in putting the Government on the back foot, but it does not end here. We need to utilise the next three months by continuing to mount as much pressure as possible on all MP’s, Labor, Liberal, Nationals - All of them.
The enormous success of the email campaign to date must continue and incorporate each MP no matter what party they belong to. Let them know that they will be held accountable at the next election if they choose to support the NSW Governments plans to privatise electricity.
Visit the USU website here where you will find a link to contact MP’s. Phone them, email them, make an appointment to see them and ensure that all of your family and friends do the same.
