Liberal candidate for Farrer Raissa Butkowski said if elected in the by-election, she would work with her Coalition counterparts to push for change.
According to the latest figures from Australia’s national energy watchdog, the Australian Energy Regulator, 72,914 households across NSW were in hardship in the second quarter of 2025.
That number is a 106 per cent increase – with 37,490 extra households experiencing energy distress since Labor was elected.
Shadow Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction, Dan Tehan, said the federal government’s energy policies had failed to deliver affordable energy.
“Under Labor, power bills are up nearly 40 per cent because the government has chosen to rip the guts out of our energy system,” Mr Tehan said.
“A lack of baseload power and sufficient supply is pushing up prices, and that is showing up as higher prices every time Australians open their power bill.
“Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised to cut power bills by $275 but Australian households have not seen that promised reduction.”
Mrs Butkowski said the record hardship numbers are a demonstration of the impact that Labor’s policy failures are having on people across the community.
“Every family and small business I speak to across the electorate tells me stories of hardship and distress,” she said.
“I’ve heard of parents skipping meals to make sure that they can afford to pay the household bills, or people who hadn’t been able to get a night’s sleep as they worry that the family business is on the verge of closing.”
“On May 9, people across Farrer will have an opportunity to choose their federal representative.
“If elected, I will hold the Labor government to account for breaking our energy system and putting so many people in financial hardship.
“I will also work as part of the Liberal team on policies that can deliver the cheap and affordable energy that Farrer needs, not one-size-fits-all mandates and targets that we can’t practically achieve.”
