Greens want a state-owned power retailer

The Greens will take a radical re-nationalisation agenda to the next federal election that would strip energy, health, communications, banks, education and aged care operations from private providers and hand them back to the state.

Greens leader Senator Richard Di Natale.

In comments that will embolden the party's socialist-left, Greens leader Richard Di Natale will tell the National Press Club on Wednesday that people “have had enough".

"They want us to take back control of our economy and make it work for them again," he will say.

Read the story by Eyrk Bagshaw from The Age - “Greens want a state-owned power retailer.”

'Electricity shock' - from the Shepparton News

It takes a lot to be less popular than the banks, but electricity companies have managed it.

The regular Energy Consumers Australia survey, released yesterday, has found twice as many people think they are getting value for money from their bank and mobile phone provider as from their electricity retailer.

Power bills leave people unhappy.

Just one-in-three people surveyed last September were satisfied with the value for money they got from their power bills.

Satisfaction levels dropped in every state and territory except Tasmania, with the highest falls recorded in the ACT and Victoria.

The highest proportion of satisfied customers was in South Australia, where 39 per cent gave positive responses.

And consumer confidence in their ability to choose the best power deal has dropped to new lows across the country.

Everywhere except Queensland, less than half the survey respondents were confident they had enough information to make good decisions about which electricity plan was best for them.

This has been a key focus Hole in hip-pocket: for the Federal Government, which has pushed retailers to be more transparent in the information they give their energy customers about their bills and plans.

But householders were overwhelmingly happy everywhere except in WA with the reliability of their electricity connections, with between two-thirds and three-quarters saying they were satisfied.

Energy Consumers Australia says the message is overwhelming that people want to make sure their power bills are affordable.

‘‘Consumers are telling us clearly that their primary concern is affordability and not one more dollar should be spent on new generation or the poles and wires than is necessary,’’ chief executive Rosemary Sinclair said.

‘‘People want comfortable homes, competitive businesses and bills that don’t make them so anxious that they put off opening them.’’

Across the board, Australians were generally willing to change their behaviour or use energy-saving appliances to reduce their power usage — and their bills.

More than seven in 10 said they would be happy to do this, especially in times of very hot weather, although almost three in 10 said they would do so only if given an incentive.

There was also a high amount of interest in battery storage systems.

MELBOURNE: Keeping tabs on up to 300 potential terrorists and other highrisk offenders in the community will be the job of staff at a $31.6 million specialist centre in Melbourne.

The Fixated Threat Assessment Centre is a joint action by Victoria Police and the Department of Health and Human Services and will be fully operational by March 13, it was announced yesterday.

This story from the Shepparton News -  “Electricity shock.”

Paris braced for floods after heavy rain causes Seine River to burst banks

Parisians have been urged to use "extreme caution" after the River Seine burst its banks and water levels rose at least 3.3 metres above the normal level. 

A photo taken on 23 January shows flooded banks of the
river Seine, which has overflown after torrential rain has battered Paris 

Authorities closed several roads near the French's capital's City Hall and cancelled boat cruises as forecasters warned that the water is expected to keep rising in the coming days. 

Expected to reach its peak later this week, fears are mounting that it could surpass the water level recorded in 2016, when the worst flooding seen in Paris for decades led to the closure of several monuments and tourist attractions including the Louvre.

Read Ryan Butcher’s story on the Independent - “Paris braced for floods after heavy rain causes Seine River to burst banks.”

Climate action is good business

YOU may have noticed a change in the emphasis of your morning coffee read.

Australians disappointed with Government's response to climate change.

The press has begun to devote serious column space to the issue of ‘climate change’ — including in the business pages. The banks are talking about climate change in their annual reports. As are companies with household brand-names, from Nike and Unilever to BHP. Even market watchdogs, such as the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), recently warned that, left unmanaged, climate change poses risks to our economic stability.

So why this business-sector interest on what was, historically, an issue only for ‘environmentalists’?

Read The Courier-Mail story by Sarah Barker - “Climate action is good business."

Sarah Barker in Shepparton on Monday night, on Radio National today

Minter Ellison special counsel Sarah Barker was in Shepparton on Monday night and today she was part of a discussion on Radio National.

Minter Ellison special counsel was in Shepparton
on Monday night at a Slap Tomorrow event
and today she was on Radio National discussing
similar financial risk and climate change. 

Financial regulators are urging companies to disclose what assets are at risk from climate change, warning insurers, superannuation funds and banks that they place their futures in jeopardy if they fail to understand the real risks of environmental and economic change.

Meanwhile, a Sydney based company that specialises in measuring risks from extreme weather and climate change on critical infrastructure and essential services is trialling a website to test the vulnerability of any property to coastal inundation.

Listen to the discussion on Radio National - “Climate risk.”

China will finance Adani mine, insiders say, but it will cost Australian jobs

The Adani Group is close to securing finance for its controversial coal mine and railway project in outback Queensland, with an announcement expected in coming weeks that Chinese state-owned enterprises, banks, and export credit agencies are backing the venture.

China's money could mean Adani no longer
needs a loan from the Australian Government.

Australian taxpayers may be let off the hook under the deal, which could mean Adani no longer requires an Australian Government-subsidised loan of up to $1 billion for the railway it needs to transport the coal to port.

But China's money will come at the cost of local jobs.

Chinese enterprises and export credit agencies invariably require that materials for key infrastructure are sourced from China, effectively shifting work out of Australia and undermining Adani's claims its project will create many thousands of additional jobs for Queensland.

Read the story by Stephen Long on ABC News - “China will finance Adani mine, insiders say, but it will cost Australian jobs.”

Banks should disclose lending to companies with carbon-related risks, says report

Banks should disclose lending to companies with carbon-related risks, according to recommendations in a new report by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures.

 A new report outlines how companies should disclose
 climate-related information in their financial filings. 

The TCFD report – part of a G20 initiative led by governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney and former mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg – outlines how companies should disclose climate-related information in their financial filings, with the aim of allowing economies to properly value climate-related risks.

It recommends companies disclose all of their direct and and indirect greenhouse gas emissions, and describe the risks and opportunities caused by climate change under a range of potential scenarios.

Read Michael Slezak’s story on The Guardian - “Banks should disclose lending to companies with carbon-related risks, says report.”