Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, for the information of senators I table additional information on two questions asked of me in the Senate yesterday by Senator Birmingham. I seek leave to have this additional information incorporated into Hansard.

Leave granted.

The answer read as follows—

MINISTER FOR BROADBAND, COMMUNICATIONS AND THE DIGITAL ECONOMY

Senate Question without Notice 18 June 2013

Question No: 1

Senator BIRMINGHAM (South Australia) (14:30): Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Has any reprofiling or adjustment to the planned schedule for the handover of Telstra pits to NBN Co. occurred as a result of asbestos concerns? If so, in which states and on how many sites has this occurred? Again, can the minister indicate on how many sites Telstra has delayed work and whether this has delayed handover of any NBN rollout sites as yet?

Answer:

NBN Co. will not compromise safety for speed. The upgrade of national infrastructure is required. At some point this will involve interaction with material containing asbestos. It is not an issue of stopping the rollout, but ensuring work is done safely and responsibly.

NBN Co is working with the government, the unions, the national health and safety regulator Comcare, and the independent asbestos taskforce to examine closely the asbestos safety regime being applied across all aspects of the rollout.

The steps are unlikely to have a significant impact on the overall rollout timetable. The entire project remains on track to be completed by June 2021. NBN Co is currently assessing what impact these measures may have on the pace of the rollout in the short term.

Question No: 2

Senator BIRMINGHAM (South Australia) (14:32): I thank the minister for taking that aspect of the question on notice. My final supplementary is: has NBN Co. made any changes to the contractual expectations or policies it expects its NBN Co. contractors to adhere to as a result of asbestos concerns? If so, what changes has NBN Co. made in relation to its expectations of its contractors?

Answer:

A new national standard for dealing with asbestos in pit and pipe infrastructure is being developed. Until such time as the new national standard is agreed and the training course is up and running, NBN Co will transfer the important task of handling and removing asbestos in pit and pipe, and disposing of asbestos waste, from its Tier One contractors to specialist asbestos removal firms. This is already happening in the Northern Territory where NBN Co is managing the rollout directly.

From day one of the rollout, NBN Co has required its contractors to develop and implement certified safety management systems, work procedures and detailed safety management plans that are required to be compliant with contractual and legislative requirements.

These include, but are not necessarily limited to:

NBN Co has implemented a system of regular audits as a means of satisfying itself that its contractors' and their sub-contractors are meeting their legal and regulatory obligations.