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

He has made 155 deliveries and he has not troubled the scorer. In the transition to the NBN, the existing regime needs to be reformed to improve competition, strengthen consumer safeguards and remove unnecessary red tape. The historic reforms will fundamentally change existing telecommunications regulations in the national interest. They are critical to future growth, productivity and innovation across the Australian economy. I note that these reforms have been welcomed by the ACCC, consumer groups, telecommunications carriers and other senators in this chamber—even by some members of the coalition.

As I said yesterday, governments of both persuasions have avoided these necessary reforms. This has hindered the development of competition, investment and innovation in our telecommunications industry. It has hurt consumers and small businesses across the country. We are correcting the mistakes of the past, when opportunities to address Telstra’s highly integrated market position were missed. For years, telcos, industry experts and the regulator have been calling for fundamental reforms in telecommunications. These reforms address the structures of the telco market today. We cannot afford to wait for the completion of the NBN. (Time expired)