Cathy McGowan (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak about the areas of my electorate that are prone to natural disasters, particularly to bushfires. In particular, I will talk about the shire of Murrindindi. Many of the 3,000 people who live in the shire continue to lack the basic communications infrastructure that most Australians take for granted. This is not an isolated area of Victoria; many of these towns are in view of Melbourne's skyscrapers. Murrindindi was seriously affected by the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires. Almost five years later, Murrindindi continues to experience a real shortage of mobile, TV and radio coverage. Additionally, many people cannot access ADSL connections due to the ageing copper-wire network and in many cases they cannot access 3G.

The small community of Narbethong has been receiving analogue television for many years. It has been told that this was an accident caused by a tower's signal drifting to them. While digital TV is switched on there, many residents are not eligible for a satellite that would allow TV coverage. Narbethong is similar to many small communities that now have no analogue TV and either poor or non-existent digital TV. Other communities experiencing similar problems are Eildon, Piries and Goughs Bay. People from across the region have written to my office telling my staff and me that they do not have TV, radio or mobile phone reception. These people live within two hours of Melbourne CBD, yet they are cut off from digital communications.

Rural Victorians have been told that we will have to wait 18 months to access the new NBN satellite, because the NBN interim satellite is now full. I suspect that might be the case for other rural electorates. This means that for 18 months—until at least mid-2015 when the new satellite becomes available—hundreds of people will be without internet access to their home. If we are to have regional growth to boost our manufacturing and agriculture industries we must have access to modern communications technology. Businesses need to know what is happening in the world around them to be able to communicate with customers, to place orders and to be part of the global economy. There is another real, more urgent concern, and that is, as summer comes upon us, these communities in this area will not be able to communicate with emergency services and families in the event of fires. No-one should have to live the fear they are unable to contact their families in the event of disasters.

I sincerely want this parliament to realise the importance of reliable telecommunications infrastructure in Australia across all mediums. I want to see us pay attention to small communities who should not be left behind when planning the way for our country communities. In my electorate of Indi, we are working to identify the areas of top priority for mobile phone black spots and we urgently need more satellite capacity. In the meantime, I would be delighted to hear from my colleagues to know innovative and effective ways that you are working to ensure that rural communities are able to access telecommunications infrastructure in the short term. I am pleased to support this motion.