The Victorian government’s bid to enshrine the revived State Electricity Commission in the state’s constitution looks set to fail, with several crossbenchers in the upper house vowing to vote against the move.
The energy minister, Lily D’Ambrosio, on Wednesday introduced a bill to parliament to enshrine the SEC in the constitution – a key promise made at last year’s state election – and stipulate that it can only invest in renewable energy.
She said the move would protect public ownership of the SEC, which was the state’s provider of electricity before it was privatised in the 1990s by the Kennett government.
“It is about putting Victorians’ interests ahead of those profits that Liberal governments always seem to be interested in delivering to big corporations,” D’Ambrosio said.
“That is why we are going to make it as hard as we can for any future Liberal government to be able to sell off or destroy the SEC.”
It is not the first time Labor has sought to protect its legislation in this way. Ahead of the 2018 election, the government vowed to amend the constitution to insert existing legislative bans on fracking and coal seam gas and did so in 2021.
But the new upper house – made up of 15 Labor MPs, 13 Coalition MPs and 12 crossbenchers, including four Greens – will pose a challenge for the government.
To achieve the statutory majority of 60% that is required to make changes to the constitution - without the support of the Coalition – Labor needs nine votes from the crossbench.
Four of the 12 crossbenchers – the Shooters Fishers and Farmers’ Jeff Bourman, independent Moira Deeming, the Libertarian party’s David Limbrick and One Nation’s Rikkie-Lee Tyrrell – have indicated they will not support the bill, leaving the government without the numbers to pass it.
Limbrick, who voted against enshrining the fracking ban in the constitution, said he would do so again.
“Forget about the merits or otherwise of the SEC bill. Changing the constitution for things like this sets a dangerous precedent for government overreach,” he told Guardian Australia. “Government shouldn’t be able to rule from the grave.
“The constitution is a framework that sets out the rules for governing. It shouldn’t be used to entrench policies by the government of the day. This is more than constitutional graffiti – it undermines future democratically elected governments.”
Deeming said she would not support the bill because she was yet to see any proof from the government that the SEC would lower Victorians’ power bills.
“This is not a party that cares about the working classes. They are doing nothing to lower the cost of living,” she said.
Tyrrell said renewable energy was not yet “a viable alternative nor is it a worthwhile enterprise for Victoria to engage in”.
“The original SEC was a fantastic asset that generated economic gains for the Victorian community. However, SEC 2.0 proposed by the Labor government hinges its entire success on the ill-conceived renewable sector and its net zero targets,” she said.
Bourman said he was “not a fan” of enshrining the SEC in the constitution and was “not into transactional politics”, so would not support the bill.
Former Labor party MP Adem Somyurek said his first impression was that it was a “stunt” from the government.
“They are going to have to convince me that there is market failure in the essential services space for me to consider supporting it,” Somyurek said.
Other crossbenchers, including a progressive bloc of Greens, Animal Justice Party and Legalise Cannabis MPs, were yet to form a position on the bill.
In the lead-up to the November election, Labor pledged to revitalise the SEC in order to spearhead renewable energy projects. The then premier, Daniel Andrews, said it would create downward pressure on power bills, cut emissions and create 60,000 job.
The opposition’s energy spokesperson, David Davis, said the SEC had “failed to lower electricity prices by a single cent”.
“In fact, since it was announced … [prices] have increased by 25%,” he said.
D’Ambrosio said the vote would be a “test” for the opposition leader, John Pesutto, who previously said he would consider scrapping the SEC if the Coalition won the next election.
“Have they learned anything from decades of privatisation?” she said.
