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News$700k worth of savings tips from the government
$700k worth of savings tips from the government

$700k worth of savings tips from the government

Tags: Energy Information
Last updated by Someone on

Unless you’ve been living under a rock lately, you would have noticed all the talk about energy prices. If you have been off the grid (pun intended), there’s no hiding from your energy bill, which will find you eventually. 

And so will the Federal Government’s latest $700,000 ad campaign!

Launched this month, the Powering Forward Campaign reportedly cost tax-payers $300,000 for 60 seconds of airtime during the AFL & NRL Grand Finals, and as much as $700,000 in fees to a Melbourne ad agency.

There's some useful information buried in there, but it's hidden behind propaganda pushing the government's energy policy credentials.

What do you think of the campaign?

Our take? The website contains some useful info for people wanting to save on power bills, for example it links to the Energy Made Easy comparison site and the Victorian Switchon site to compare offers.

It also contains energy efficiency tips for households, which can be handy.

But all that useful stuff is buried behind the silly “powering forward” slogan and some bumph about the Government’s Snowy Hydro 2.0 and gas reservation policies.

They’re important, but we’d like to see the moneysaving info up front and centre!

Here’s something else you can do to save.

A couple of months back, the Fiftyup Club started our Power-Up Campaign,  which now boasts a staggering 50,000 registrations nationally That tells us that you do want to do something about energy prices even if it’s just to send a message to power companies that enough is enough.

While Australia may rank second in the world for quality-of-life, we rate first in the world for the highest energy prices. Data from the Carbon + Energy Markets' MarkIntell service says we’re ahead of Germany, Denmark and Italy with 4 Australian states in the top ten (click here to see the list).

This despite Australia having every energy resource available in the world including coal, wind, solar, nuclear and sea-water hydro power.

What can you do? It’s as easy as picking up the phone, calling your energy retailer and asking for a better deal. Don’t take no for an answer. The energy market has never been so competitive and you can get results, with many members reporting savings in the hundreds of dollars.

Click here to see the latest Fiftyup Club energy offers, extended for a limited time only


 

 

Originally posted on .

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Carrie
Carrie from NSW commented:

As for selling assets & it benefiting consumers, just ask anyone in Queensland how much they are paying for water now it is out of government hands. 

Garth
Garth from QLD replied to Carrie:

Really Carrie I have lived in Queensland for over 10 years and my water has always been and remains supplied by a government corporation. I moved from Victoria where my water was supplied by a private company and got the shock of my life when I found that the "government" supplied water was more that double the price of the "privately" supplied water in Victoria and they were having drought at the time I left. 

Ann
Ann from NSW commented:

I had 2 super accounts with the paltry sum of $43,000 all up. I signed up with RBSMorgan. I've made almost $10,000 profit in about 8 months and very happy. I came upon them by word of mouth from a friend that I would trust with all my assests. I get emails about stocks that I may be interested in and then I can ring and talk to my manager about said shares if I want to buy or sell and I rely on his advice as he seems to be on the money so far. Extremely happy with my super. 

Stephen
Stephen from NSW commented:

We have been slowly and painfully loosing AUSTRALIA over the years from governments that want less do deal with Australia. We are loosing our identity. 

Brian
Brian from NSW commented:

brian from nsw . roger, re the price of electricity , the prev,s govt. nsw. borrowed around 17 bill. againest the assetts poles and wires . they are paying the debit off with our electricity bills , the assetts are valued at arround 25 bill.. if they sell it they get arrond 8 bill. or so 

Someone
Someone from NSW commented:

No No No No No keep this a public owned company. 

Peter
Peter from NSW commented:

Anonymous from NSW commented No No also and keep it as public companies and it is only a short term solution to a long term problem that the State and Federal sell it off and how about we sell their assets off to recover the money they would get for it 

Alan
Alan from NSW commented:

OK Rod Sims, perhaps you can explain why 27 of the 28 US states are now trying to bring their electricity companies back in to public ownership, after privatizing them some years ago. If that's too difficult for you, I'll give you a hint...the rising costs charged by the private companies. So much for the junkets that generally justified by calling them fact finding missions or study tours. Also why did the stupid NSW govt. decide to sell off the lotteries, they were getting a windfall for doing absolutely nothing. 30% of the take to the organizers, 30% to the govt. and 40% back to the mug punter. Money for nothing. Selling off any public asset, whether it be state or federal, generally results in short term gain for long term pain. As for selling to pay off debt, perhaps that person should look at why we are in debt. As with families, you rid yourself of debt by saving, not by selling your possessions. 

Garth
Garth from QLD replied to Alan:

Alan, the USA has 50 States not 28. What you are referring to is not States trying to "bring their electricity companies back to public ownership" it is individual communities - Boulder Colorado as an example trying to buy back their local grids (poles and wires). The main reason for this is that the utility puts unreasonable restrictions on the amount of renewable energy that they will allow on the local grid. The theory goes that if a community "buys back" their local grid, they will be able to permit more wind, solar and hydro into the energy mix. Yes, the electricity will cost more (a relative term compared to Aussie electricity prices) but those communities have decided it is worth it for the environmental or feel-good benefit. There is also a lot of this going on in Germany. What is not happening anywhere is private companies being purchased by governments to put electricity companies back into public ownership. There would be no government, Federal, State or local anywhere in the western world with that amount of cash hanging around (except, perhaps Norway with its sovereign wealth fund). 

Ian
Ian from NSW commented:

Australia post parcel delivery is already privatized. I Iive at Coffs Harbour 7 the contractor who is supposed to deliver parcels around the area I live at refuses to deliver any parcels, instead he just delivers a card telling you that you have a parcel at the PO. This is very inconvenient to people like me who are old pensioners & don't drive, also I have heard of single parent mums who have to pack up the kids & drag them down to the post office to get their parcels.... is this fair ???????? 

john
john from NSW commented:

Why is meat so expensive when farmers are only getting if they are lucky, $2.20 a kg. Out of this they have to pay cartage, yard fees & ID ear tags. Not to mention the feed & animal health products to raise them. Yes I know there is wastage, but please most cuts are over $20 a kg. I saw eye fillet in Coles for $56 a kg. Meat is flown into Dubai & is still cheaper there then here. 

Someone
Someone from NSW replied to john:

Ah yes. Many things produced in Australia can and are sold at a lower price overseas.But why not charge us more? We moan softly once or twice and keep on buying.We are, as a whole, a weak, manipulated, knackered,. powerless mob and our masters and betters know it oh so well. They also know we are truly angry for a couple of minutes and then quickly distracted by the throwing of a shrimp on the BBQ or the cricket. Yep, we are treated as we allow ourselves to be treated., as we deserve to be treated. 

nicolas
nicolas from NSW commented:

nick from nsw my opinion the government should privatise every thing and concentrate of running the country,its the only way the country can get out of debt. 

Christine
Christine from NSW replied to nicolas:

Nicolas you must be joking or just wanting someone like me to bite, well I'm biting. Privatising is not the answer prices will increase even more, after all we are really giving the CEO's a wage increase and they don't deserve it, we the workers deserve the wage increase. Remember how Abbott the mouth did nothing but whinge when Labour were in? now where's Abbott hiding, his mouth is shut and treating the public like mushrooms telling us nothing. Selling off is not the answer we need to keep our public sector with the government, and remember also Hockey wants to increase our debt, I don't here anyone complaing with the Libs doing this. Come on Australians stand up and be counted voice you opinion and be heard. and thank goodness for Dick Smith, also Isn't it nice to have our 50up club that can hunt for deals for us to compare! 

Scott
Scott from NSW replied to nicolas:

You're dead right Nick. Governments can't run businesses efficiently nor profitably. When Qantas was privatised 5000 administrative staff were sacked, and nothing changed within the business, they produced nothing, and added no value. Governments should govern, not try to run businesses with thousand and thousands of unproductive staff. 

Beverley
Beverley from NSW commented:

Bit like if we can have a solar panel on roadside telephones . . . why not a light pole? Why do we need cables for street lighting? My tiny garden lights have an inch square panel which keeps them burning for maybe 8-9 hours if not more - summer and winter! Im no economist Roger but maybe . . . . . too many private operators? . . . all looking for a slice of the action? Treating us like morons. Because we once trusted suppliers to do the right thing by us. When we check out fine print for deals? On the surface, everyone offers something different - less expensive, more discounts - then when you are locked in . . . the sky's the limit? and when one (supplier) finds a loophole the others get on the bandwagon with another ploy - bit like schoolyard tactics "my dad can do better than yours!" and before you know it we have a generation of superheroes. And service and supply is not the name of the game . . . it is all about the bottomline. 

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