NEWS - Politics & IR

 2 Comments

Greens may pull support for Telstra split

Published 12:15 PM, 17 Mar 2010 Last update 11:12 PM, 17 Mar 2010

QUICK SUMMARY | FULL STORY | BACKGROUND | KOHLER | MORE COMMENT

Reuters/AAP

The federal government's plans to force a breakup of Telstra Corporation Ltd have hit another hurdle with the Australian Greens party set to withdraw its support for the proposed legislation.

The party said on Wednesday their support for laws splitting the country's largest phone company was weakening due to lack of cooperation from the government.

"It's basically burning the goodwill of the crossbenches," Australian Greens Senator Scott Ludlam told reporters.

"The minister has been saying trust us on the NBN (National Broadband Network) legislation for more than a year, and I'm afraid around here trust these days is in very short supply."

The Greens, who sometimes have the casting vote in the upper house Senate, could sink a key plank of the government's telecoms reform agenda, which would split off Telstra's fixed-line network and use it to help build a $39 billion fast broadband network.

Telstra shares slumped steadily to record lows after the break-up plan was announced in September, but the stock has rallied four per cent in the past week on doubts that the government can get its Telstra break-up bill through the Senate.

The stock ticked up after the Greens' comments, and ended the day 0.64 per cent stronger at $3.13.

Govt rejects Greens demand

Communications Minister Stephen Conroy declined on Wednesday to meet a Greens' demand to release a key study into the design of the broadband network, risking the anger of the seven cross-bench senators whose votes are crucial to approving it.

"It is not uncommon, and in fact is sensible, responsible and appropriate, for governments to take some time to consider reports they receive before decisions are made about release and next steps," Mr Conroy told parliament.

Speaking to ABC TV's Lateline, Mr Conroy said the government had been very cooperative, but said that the report was hundreds of pages long and the government needed time to digest the information before making its decision as to whether to release it.

"The report which we received on March the 5th is hundreds and hundreds of pages long, it's very complex and important document, and at the moment I am in the process of briefing my cabinet colleagues on it," Mr Conroy told the program.

"And the government as a whole is assessing it, and is going to make some decisions about that in the near future."

He said it was not unreasonable for the government to want to consider the document and understand it better before making a decision on whether and when to release it.

"But I have never said, not once... that we will not be releasing this document," he said.

"The government is going to make a decision around those issues in the near future."

He refused however to guarantee the release of the report, saying that he was not going to pre-empt the cabinet process.

Last week, Mr Ludlam lodged a senate order for Mr Conroy to release the $25 million KPMG and McKinsey study on the cost, structure and viability of the $43 billion national broadband network.

The Greens, though broadly supportive of the move and counting five of the cross-bench senators, want to see the study before finalising their voting position.

"It's a refusal to comply with an order for the production of documents. On a project of this scale, that's a very serious thing for the minister to do," Mr Ludlam said.

"I would say that with the amount of bad faith that's been generated in this debate so far, it's a really foolhardy move."

Legislation debate stalls

Doubts about the government's reforms ignited on Monday when it delayed debating them in the Senate as scheduled, though Mr Conroy said later that the government was still committed to the reforms and it would bring on a Senate debate this week.

The government wants Telstra to separate its wholesale infrastructure from its retail operations, so its network of exchanges can be rolled in to the new broadband network.

If passed, the bill would force a "functional separation" of Telstra, unless the company voluntarily separates its network and retail operations.

Mr Ludlam said he did not expect a vote on the legislation when debate resumed in parliament on Thursday, as the opposition was adopting delaying tactics. That would push a vote back until May.

"This is a very, very important piece of information on the NBN which obviously has quite major consequences for the Telstra legislation," he said.

"The support of the Australian Greens is essential for the government's telecommunications agenda to progress. That support can no longer be taken for granted.

"To be honest, I don't think we're going to come to vote."

Earlier in the week, Family First senator Steve Fielding said he believed a deal between the government and Telstra on the telco's assets was "imminent".

The bills would also bar Telstra from acquiring specific wireless broadband spectrum, unless it separates the two arms of its business, and force it to divest its hybrid coaxial cable network and its 50 per cent stake in Foxtel, Australia's biggest cable television service provider.




|  

2 Comments


John Flynne wrote:

Conroy will not release the complete report.

Where is he explaining his proposal to the Telstra shareholders?

I feel sure somewhere in his $43 billion budget he could afford it.

17 Mar 2010 2:13 PM

Stephen Tan wrote:

Thank god for the senate. Thank god it possesses the good sense which apparently the government doesn't. And lastly, thank god for our system of government.

Go Greens, Go senator Fielding. (see Greens may pull support for Telstra split, March 17)

And....where the bloody hell are you, Mr Abbott?

17 Mar 2010 2:29 PM



Contribute to the Conversation

To contribute your comments for possible publication, please Login or Register.

Preference will be given to succinct contributions. We may contact you via email prior to publication.


Sponsored Links