The Coalition is trying to recover from last week's near-collapse of the National Energy Guarantee, when former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull dropped plans to legislate cuts to carbon emissions amid a backbench revolt that cost him his job. Mr Taylor will focus on price and reliability and has made no assurances about pollution. Environmental groups have urged him to stick to the Coalition policy of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 26 per cent by 2030 to meet Australia's commitments under the Paris accord. The new approach puts energy providers on notice to expect heavy-handed rules to stop price increases, on top of existing powers already handed to the nation’s consumer watchdog. In his speech, the new Liberal minister declares himself a "lover of the environment" and says he has seen the impact of climate change at his family's farm in southern NSW. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video

"But none of my concerns justify supporting expensive programs that deliver little else other than funnelling consumers’ hard-earned money into vested interests and result in increased prices and reduce reliability," Mr Taylor says. He names Labor’s emissions trading scheme, the renewable energy target and the Labor scheme to install pink batts in ceilings as examples of intervention that passed higher costs on to consumers. Loading "In good conscience, I simply can’t support the hard-earned wages of Australians being siphoned off into these sorts of schemes," he says. The remarks are likely to infuriate those in the solar and wind sector who believe their renewable projects are thriving because they can undercut the price of coal and gas energy.

The Grattan Institute found in January this year that "green schemes" made up 16 per cent of the increase in power bills over the past decade, but noted they only comprised 6 per cent of the average bill, based on data from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The analysis found that network costs made up 42 per cent of the increase and retail margins made up 26 per cent of the increase over the decade. Mr Taylor is seeking to open talks with big energy companies about the idea of offering financial guarantees from the Commonwealth to underwrite new power generation projects regardless of their technology. "I see a strong role for commercially viable renewables, alongside continued focus on coal and gas," he says. With the future of the NEG in doubt and a new cabinet yet to decide its stance on Paris and emission reductions, Mr Morrison is concentrating on ACCC measures to cut prices.

"I am going to be the Prime Minister for getting electricity prices down. Angus Taylor is the minister for getting electricity prices down and that is a core focus of my government, particularly in the early days," he said. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has also outlined tougher rules on electricity prices, adopted from ACCC recommendations and including a cap on prices in "default" electricity packages offered to all consumers. Loading State agreement is expected to be needed to impose the tougher rules under either a Coalition or a Labor government. "We need more price-busting initiatives," Mr Taylor will tell a small business summit in Sydney on Thursday.