10. CHARLES CHAUVEL (Labour) Link to this
to the Minister of Energy and Resources
Does the Government still subscribe to the New Zealand Energy Strategy 2007—in particular, the goals of achieving 90 percent renewable electricity generation by 2025 and halving domestic transport emissions per capita by 2040?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE (Minister of Energy and Resources) Link to this
If the member did not spend so much time nosying about the Facebook pages of my staff, he might have read some of my speeches, in which I acknowledge that the previous Government’s Energy Strategy is considered by the current Government to be inefficient in a number of respects. It will be updated later in the year. However, as regards the targets the member mentions, they remain important aspirational goals.
Chris AuchinvoleHon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
Yes, I have. I have seen a report that between 2000 and 2008, when Labour was in office, well over half of all the new electricity generation that came on stream was generated from thermal sources. The Labour Government gave a gas guarantee to Genesis so that it could build the new, 385-megawatt gas-fired station at Huntly, and electricity generated from coal grew astronomically.
Does the Minister stand by his comments that renewable energy will be incentivised by a price on carbon; if so, how does he expect that to happen, when his colleague Nick Smith has already answered in Parliament that he has no idea when the emissions trading scheme will be operational?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
Yes, I do stand by that. The Government, as the member knows, has a select committee reviewing the previous Government’s legislation, and remains of the view that New Zealand should have an emissions trading scheme and that there should be a price on carbon.
Does the Minister stand by his statement that “Transport makes up nearly half of New Zealand’s energy use … but only 0.7% of the sector’s energy use is renewable. We need to change that over time if we are to start reducing our greenhouse gas emissions.”; if he does, when will he introduce sustainability standards for biofuels, given his Government’s opposition to adding biofuels into New Zealand’s energy mix until such standards are introduced?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
There were a number of questions there, so I will go through them slowly. Firstly, the Ministry for the Environment is currently working on standards, which will soon be promulgated, for the production of biofuel in New Zealand. The second question was whether I stand by my statement that we need to reduce emissions from transport over time. I do. I liken it to someone in about 1880 deciding whether there should be a significant reduction in horse droppings on the roads over the next 30-odd years. The answer then was yes, and we are in exactly the same sort of period of technology transformation at the present time. I think the member should be comforted by the fact that I stated earlier that transport emission reduction is in fact an aspirational goal.
Mr SPEAKEROne can only conclude that the Government is actually wanting to waste time today, with answers as long as that.
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. That question had four parts to it. I did my best to answer, because you are keen that Ministers answer members’ questions.
I was perfectly happy to allow the Minister time to answer the parts of the question, because there were a number of parts in it. But then he continued on, much after that. Charles Chauvel, supplementary question.
Will we ever see an energy policy from the Minister’s Government that shows an understanding of the sustainability challenges faced by New Zealand, or will he just continue to dismantle all of the previous Government’s work in this area while continuing to claim the credit for the results of that work?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
I make no attempt to claim credit for half of the new generation produced or commissioned under that member’s Government relying on thermal fuel. I make no claim to the 72 percent increase in electricity retail prices over the term of his Government. I simply answer his two questions with yes and no.