Alan Eggleston (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Coonan. Will the minister advise the Senate of what the Howard government is doing to safeguard the availability of payphones where they are needed most? Is the minister aware of any alternative policies?

Helen Coonan (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Eggleston for his interest in this ongoing and important issue. The government recognises that access to payphones is an important community service, particularly for people on low incomes and for people living in rural and regional Australia. That is why the obligation to supply, install and maintain payphones is a universal service obligation so that all Australians, regardless of where they live, have reasonable access to a payphone.

There was, understandably, widespread community concern earlier this year following reports that Telstra was considering removing up to 5,000 payphones. That is why I have announced a range of initiatives to ensure there is more consultation and better information about plans Telstra may have to remove any payphones. While Telstra should be free to make commercial decisions on the location of its more than 32,000 payphones, it must also continue to meet its obligations under the universal service obligation.

To ensure that communities can clearly understand their rights to a USO payphone the government will require Telstra to clearly describe what constitutes a USO payphone. Telstra will also be required to clearly identify which payphones are provided under the USO, and they will be required to ensure that there are robust consultation processes where a non-USO payphone is to be removed or relocated. Telstra will be required to incorporate into their website payphone locator a USO payphone icon so communities of fewer than 50,000 people will be able to identify the USO payphones in their area. Where there is a non-USO payphone Telstra will be required to provide reasons for a proposal to remove the phone and details of how individuals can object.

ACMA will take a more active role in monitoring Telstra’s compliance with its payphone obligations and will enhance its payphone related complaints and awareness raising activities. While many Australians, of course, now use a fixed line or a mobile phone as their main means of communication, payphones continue to play an important communications role in communities right across Australia. By enhancing the USO process, communities can be confident that vital USO payphones are protected and, further, that they will be consulted if there is a proposal to remove or relocate any payphones.

The government’s response in dealing with Telstra’s proposal to remove payphones is a good example of how the universal service obligation is working well, and how the framework is in place that will stay there quite irrespective of whether the government holds shares in Telstra. Rural Australia is simply not fooled by alternate policies—although we have not really seen any, to be perfectly honest, on this issue. Under Labor, people waited more than two years to have their home phone connected, let alone a USO phone connected. To add insult to injury, Labor decided to close down the analogue mobile network without having any alternative in place. The coalition government will continue the job of delivering services for rural and regional Australia, and will ensure that they continue to have access to good telecommunication services.