E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
MIX 104.9M – 360 WITH KATIE WOOLF
TUESDAY, 8 AUGUST 2022
SUBJECTS: Fuel Prices; Appointed Chair of the House Standing Committee on Regional Development, Infrastructure and Transport; high airfares; Jacinta Price calling on the Prime Minister to visit Alice Springs.
KATIE WOOLF, HOST: Joining me on the line is the Member for Solomon, Luke Gosling. Good morning to you, Luke.
LUKE GOSLING, MEMBER FOR SOLOMON: Hey, Katie, how are you?
WOOLF: Not bad, mate. What are you thinking about these petrol prices right now?
GOSLING: No, they're not acceptable. And unfortunately, there may have been letters written to the retailers asking them to explain what they're doing. But I just fear they're not taking it seriously. They're taking Territorians for mugs and we need a bigger stick, because if we don't apply that pressure they would come about as a result of an inquiry or some legislation around transparency, then they're going to keep taking the piss.
WOOLF: Well, this is the thing. Honestly, I've been talking about it for ages. I know so many of our listeners have been concerned about it, but those margins, you know, some days they're up over 40c a litre. Like you said, they're taking the piss. I just don't understand why there seems to be this sort of hesitancy in terms of holding them to account.
GOSLING: Yeah. Actually, Katie, I don't know if you're you and I have talked about it yet, but I've been appointed as the chair of the House of Representatives Transport Committee down in Canberra. And one of the things I was going to look at is the gouging of Territorians and other regional Australians when it comes to airfares. Because that's really important for Territorians to be able to get about the place, but getting about the place – pretty important that you have affordable fuel in your car. And if we're serious about developing the North, it's got to be affordable to live here. And when you see cases such as we're seeing at the moment where fuel is so far ahead of the terminal gate price, that is amazing profits for the retailers. And if they won't pull their heads in, then we've got to put some more pressure on them to do so. We need transparency. We have a good understanding about the economics here. Territorians are getting dudded and the retailers need to come clean and explain why Territorians are paying so much more than the rest of the country, because it just doesn't add up.
WOOLF: So Luke, with this committee that you’ll be the chair of, are you going to have a look into these petrol prices? Or what do you want to do?
GOSLING: We just formed it last week in Canberra with the new Parliament starting. It’s Regional Development, Infrastructure and Transport. And so I'm going to see what I can do, but I also think that we need to be seeing what we can do as the Territory to put pressure on these retailers. Now, we're not the only jurisdiction in the country that are getting gouged when it comes to fuel. But obviously we want to make sure that maximum pressure is applied to the retailers here, because we need that transparency about their pricing. Because it's really getting harder for Territorians to fill up a car. And when the global price is falling, we're just not seeing that transfer to the prices we're paying as Territorians at the bowser.
WOOLF: It's unbelievable. And then the on flow into every other aspect of your life when it comes to cost of living is, you know, it flows on everywhere. Luke, the CLP is calling for a formal inquiry into fuel prices in the Northern Territory. Do you think we need to do that, or do you think we need to do something different?
GOSLING: I'm sure the Northern Territory Government is looking at a whole range of options available to them, including such an inquiry, including transparency measures. Because enough's enough. We need to get to a place where, if there's not a response from the retailers to the letters, then where do you go next? Do you just say, “Oh, well, they've got such a concentrated market here, we really need to let them set the prices”? No. As representatives of Territorians, we need to put the maximum amount of pressure on the retailers because it's got to be affordable for Territorians. And at the moment what we can see is the price of fuel is dropping, but the prices here are not. And that's got to change.
WOOLF: Yeah. It has to change. So Luke, are you going to be having a conversation with the Chief Minister? Kate Worden the minister had been on the show a couple of weeks ago, she said she'd write to the ACCC. The Chief Minister had said that she was going to ask those companies for please explain. But really, it's all gone quiet. And at the moment it feels as though the Government's taking no action in this space. Are you going to be having a conversation with them?
GOSLING: I absolutely will be. This is an issue that affects every single Territorian and Territory business and we can't do business, we can't thrive, if we've got these unfair prices at the bowser. And you just see it when you're at the bowser and people are struggling and wondering how much to put in, how much can the budget allow at the moment? And that is not a good situation for us to be in, because as you said, it affects every part of our daily lives. And I certainly will be following up with the Chief Minister, just to see what the plan is as far as an escalation of pressure on these companies that are doing incredibly well. They need to stop taking the mickey and either reduce their prices or face the consequences.
WOOLF: Something's got to change here. Luke Gosling, please let us know how you go with the Territory Government. We are also following up to find out what has been done since we last spoke to the Chief Minister, because, as we've said, something has definitely got to change. It's gone on for too long now. We really appreciate your time this morning, Luke. Thank you.
GOSLING: Yeah, no worries Katie, thank you, and I'll let you know how we go with the airfares inquiry angle through this new committee. I am the chair, but I've got to also listen to what the Minister's priorities are. But the Territorians can be assured that the Fair Fares campaigns that I've run previously, it's got to continue because unfortunately, like in fuel, Qantas and others are charging us way too much to get connected.
WOOLF: Luke, when is the committee going to be meeting on that topic? Because I'll be really keen to chat with you again about that.
GOSLING: We'll meet again formally in a few weeks when we're back in Canberra and can consider the Minister's priorities, but also some of the clear issues in the regional development, infrastructure and transport area. It's a massive area to look at, but these inquiries are vital. The other thing we've managed to do, Katie, is get the North Australia Committee up and running. So that might be another avenue by which we can start pointing out the disadvantages that we're facing here in the north. And that's why it's so important that we've got strong voices in the north. And I'm absolutely passionate about putting pressure on these companies, whether they're airlines or fuel retailers, to make sure that they stop gouging us.
WOOLF: Look, very quickly, before I let you go, I've only got about a minute till the news. But very quickly, Jacinta Price is calling for the Prime Minister to visit Alice Springs. Do you reckon he needs to go to Alice?
GOSLING: I'm positive that the Prime Minister will be travelling to Alice before too long. And Territorians would already understand that since he became Prime Minister not that long ago, he's already visited the Territory twice, and I'm sure he'll be going to Alice pretty soon.
WOOLF: Luke Gosling, we'll have to leave it there. Thank you for your time this morning.
GOSLING: Cheers, Katie.
