Julian Leeser (Berowra, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In May this year, I told the House about the telecommunications challenges faced by my electorate and the serious threats to life and property resulting from unreliable and inadequate service. During the last summer, the fire control centre for my region had months without a working landline and mobile reception. There are around 80 black spots that have been identified across the electorate.

I want to update the House about some small but important forward steps we've taken. Improvements have been made to fix line services so they're more resilient when storms and floods affect our area. We've made significant progress towards a new mobile tower to be installed on Dangar Island, and we've had three new mobile towers committed for Middle Dural, Glenhaven and Glenorie. Perhaps most importantly, the conditions of the government's next round of the Mobile Black Spot Program have been adjusted so that disaster prone areas like our electorate can have black spots plugged.

Now the rubber needs to hit the road. I call on all telecommunications providers to make serious applications for towers in Arcadia, Annangrove, Kenthurst, Dural, Galston, Maroota, Middle Dural, Glenhaven and Glenorie. We also need independent information about where mobile black spots are, so that people can see what coverage they really receive from providers, instead of what telecommunications companies claim they provide. We all know there's a yawning gap between the promise and the reality. I spent all year showing the need for telecommunications; now the telcos need to deliver. People living in metropolitan Sydney should be able to make phone calls and send emails from their home without a hassle. Telecommunications should be a right, not a privilege.