Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I seek leave to amend a motion relating to government business notice of motion No. 2.

Leave granted.

I move the motion as amended:

That the Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Competition and Consumer Safeguards) Bill 2009 is exempt from the order of the Senate of 13 May 2009 relating to the consideration of legislation, enabling consideration of this bill to proceed in accordance with the standing orders.

This motion is about allowing the Senate to deal with the Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Competition and Consumer Safeguards) Bill 2009 and is designed to overcome a Senate order of 13 May, originally moved by Senator Minchin and deemed to apply to the bill. This Senate order has the effect of preventing any debate on bills relating to the National Broadband Network until the government produces the ACCC’s formal report on NBN proposals to the NBN panel of experts and the final report to the government from the NBN panel of experts on submissions to the NBN.

This Senate order has been interpreted as applying to the recent telecommunications competition and consumer reform bill on changes to the existing telecommunications regulatory framework. In effect, this means that the Senate will not be able to debate this bill on telecommunications regulatory reform. I think that this interpretation of the Senate order is broader than even perhaps Senator Minchin imagined. I am asking the Senate to support this motion to ensure that important reforms to improve competition and strengthen consumer safeguards can be considered by the Senate independently and separately of any bills which specifically relate to the rollout and regulatory design for the NBN. In other words, I do not believe this bill is captured but, acknowledging the position and the interpretation, I seek to move the bill forward.

The telecommunications regulatory reforms that we have announced are designed to fundamentally reshape and improve competition and consumer regulation in the telecommunications sector as a whole in the national interest. These reforms are required, independent and irrespective of the NBN. They are significant reforms in their own right and are long overdue. The editorial today in the Australian notes:

... the Telco sector in Australia is not a truly open market. It is Telstra’s protected position that is finally being addressed ... after two decades of policy failure.

It goes on to point out that those opposite have no policy, are totally confused and are defending a monopoly position. We have been very clear that during the rollout of the NBN, and after, the existing regulatory regime which regulates the industry as a whole will remain important for delivering services in the interests of all Australians, consumers and businesses.

As we announced on 7 April, the government are committed to addressing the fact that the existing telecommunications regime does not work effectively to achieve its goals and is failing businesses and failing consumers. The regulatory reforms in this bill are critical and are urgently required to inject competition and better consumer service standards into the telecommunications industry now. On this need, the facts speak for themselves.

A report published this month for the US Federal Communications Commission, FCC, showed that Australia came fourth last in price, ahead of only Poland, Turkey and Mexico, on a weighted average of all internet access speeds. It also showed that on a weighted average of all broadband outcome measures—price, penetration, speed—Australia came 18th out of 30 OECD countries. These sorts of results are consistent with the most recent OECD statistics. We cannot wait to improve the state of competition in the telecommunications market. We cannot wait to give the ACCC the powers it needs to regulate the telecommunications sector more effectively. And we cannot wait to put in place a stronger consumer protection regime.

These reforms have been developed as a result of an extensive consultation process over a 15-month period. We have received over 200 submissions, more than even Senator Minchin’s press release tally.