The Deputy Leader of the Nationals and the member for Maranoa, David Littleproud has welcomed Telstra’s backflip on its stubborn position of not sharing the infrastructure of their network.
Minister Littleproud said up until now, Telstra has had a strangle hold on the market in the bush and that strangle hold was choking communications in the regions.
“From the time I entered Parliament I have repeatedly called on Telstra to share their mobile towers through mandated roaming with other telcos so all users could have the same coverage in the bush,” Minister Littleproud said.
“Up until now it has felt like thumping against a brick wall, as Telstra came up with every spurious reason under the sun not to accept mobile roaming.
“People in the bush have been treated as second class citizens by Telstra, putting their corporate profits before the health and safety of their customers.
“Economic activity has had a hand brake put on it and the communications of daily life has been impeded by Telstra’s greedy stance.
“In a cynical and contemptible act, five years ago Telstra mounted a scare campaign against mandated roaming to the ACCC, claiming there would be no incentive to invest in regional and rural Australia if it was implemented.
“Now Telstra have concluded that they can share their infrastructure. Well knock me over with a feather.
“For years Telstra’s CEO Andy Penn has tried every corporate trick in the book to keep complete control of their mobile towers and stop mobile roaming.
“I guess we have to be thankful Mr Penn’s last trick was a backflip.
“Andy Penn should now follow through on reforming the Universal Service Obligation so that mobile phone coverage is included in their service delivery duties.
“Now is the time to get mobiles included as a delivery obligation for Telstra for the health, safety and economic wellbeing of Australians in remote and regional Australia.”
