Jess Walsh (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Early Childhood Education) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I seek leave to have the second reading speech incorporated in Hansard.

Leave granted.

The speech read as follows—

INTRODUCTION

Triple Zero is the most critical service in our telecommunications system.

It is the number Australians call in their most desperate moment of need, when lives and safety are on the line.

Australians should trust that when they call Triple Zero, someone will answer and help will come.

But repeated failures by Optus in recent years, through which thousands of emergency calls failed to connect and lives were lost, has compromised that trust.

The Albanese Government will always work to protect Australians, and we will hold those who fail to deliver their obligations to full account.

Optus—and all telecommunications carriers—have no excuses for Triple Zero outages.

While the Australian Communications and Media Authority's independent investigation into the most recent incident continues, today I present the Telecommunications Legislative Amendment (Triple Zero Custodian and Emergency Calling Powers) Bill 2025.

WHAT'S HAPPENED SO FAR

From the moment a person dials Triple Zero into their phone, a chain of actions is set in motion.

The call passes through carriers, infrastructure owners and the Emergency Call Person, before finally landing with the relevant state and territory emergency service, who dispatch potentially lifesaving resources.

And while telco outages may occur, the law is clear—carriers must always make sure that Triple Zero calls still connect by being redirected to alternate mobile towers or infrastructure.

Despite this requirement, the Bean Review found a lack of overarching accountability over many years left the system vulnerable when coordination broke down.

That is why, in March this year, the Albanese Government established the Triple Zero Custodian in the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts.

So far, the Custodian has worked closely with industry to understand the gaps in the Triple Zero system.

Alongside the Custodian, the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman has led a steering committee of industry, government and consumer representatives to establish a longer-term Triple Zero Custodian Model.

The Government thanks the participants in that steering committee for their contribution to this incredibly important work.

This Bill cements into law the powers and functions of the existing Triple Zero Custodian, to strengthen the resilience and oversight of the Triple Zero system.

And it builds on critical industry standards starting on the 1st of November.

From the 1st of November, telecommunications carriers will have to provide real time reporting of outages to ACMA and emergency services.

They will also have to test Triple Zero during upgrades and maintenance, and ensure calls fall back to other networks if needed.

And within six months of the commencement of this Bill, the Custodian, through ACMA, will issue additional performance requirements to telcos to ensure best practice.

Telco providers know under the law they must provide reliable access to Triple Zero—that is their legal obligation.

That's why the Minister recently met with the CEOs of Optus, Telstra and TPG/Vodafone ahead of the approaching natural disaster season.

There are no excuses and the Minister made that crystal clear.

SCHEDULE 1 — MAIN AMENDMENTS

Turning to the specifics of this Bill, Schedule 1 amends the Telecommunications (Consumer Protection and Service Standards) Act 1999 to put the Custodian on a statutory footing and equip ACMA with targeted powers.

Under these amendments, ACMA may issue directions to carriers, carriage service providers and emergency call persons.

These directions may require critical information to be provided, such as technical details of an outage, policies and processes affecting Triple Zero, or restoration plans.

They may also require specific actions to be taken, such as consulting with other stakeholders, sharing information with an emergency service organisation, or improving procedures to prevent a repeat failure.

During an outage event, where the Custodian or ACMA reasonably believes access to Triple Zero may be affected, ACMA can compel timely information on the outage's nature, scale, impacts and restoration.

Information gathered by ACMA will be provided to the Custodian in a timely manner.

The Custodian will use this material to support its ongoing, system-wide oversight of Triple Zero.

ACMA will also provide advice and analysis to the Custodian to assist in identifying risks and improving preparedness across the ecosystem.

This arrangement strengthens ACMA as an active participant in Triple Zero, while maintaining the Custodian as the central coordination and oversight function within the Department.

The Bill also establishes rules for the use and disclosure of Custodian information.

This framework allows information to be shared with emergency service organisations, regulators and other relevant bodies to remediate problems before they cause crisis, and to respond during an outage of the Triple Zero system.

Schedule 1 requires ACMA to report every six months to the Minister on use of the new powers, with a copy provided to the Custodian.

The Minister may also cause a review of the Custodian's effectiveness within two years of commencement. These provisions reinforce accountability and provide the flexibility to refine the framework over time.

For constitutional reasons, the powers of direction contained in the Bill do not extend to state and territory emergency services organisations.

However, it is the Government's expectation that the Custodian will work constructively with the states and territories, to ensure the appropriate transfer of information.

SCHEDULE 2—CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS

Schedule 2 makes consequential amendments to the Telecommunications Act 1997.

It confirms ACMA's investigation pathway where matters are referred by the Custodian and establishes civil penalties for contraventions of Custodian directions.

This aligns with the penalty settings of other enforcement tools across the telecommunications regulatory framework and reinforces the seriousness of compliance.

SCHEDULE 3—TECHNICAL UPDATES TO EMERGENCY SERVICES REFERENCES

Schedule 3 of the Bill updates references to 'emergency services' so that the term is consistently defined across telecommunications legislation.

CONCLUSION

This Bill acts on the lessons of past service disruptions by establishing into law the powers and functions of the Triple Zero Custodian.

It provides the Commonwealth with a permanent mechanism to oversee emergency call services, both during outages and in business-as-usual operations.

It will also give the ACMA the tools it needs to be proactive and forward leaning in pursuing a resilient, reliable emergency call service for the benefit of all Australians.

Going forward, I will repeat for the record what the Minister said to the CEOs of Optus, Telstra and TPG.

The Albanese Government is committed to making the Triple Zero system better and more reliable for Australians.

Legislating a Triple Zero Custodian will help—but there is no silver bullet solution for corporate failure.

If a telco fails Australians—like Optus did—they will face significant consequences.

There is no excuse.