❓ The Minister expresses concern that the privatisation of Telstra will disadvantage regional WA due to the federal government's political priorities and lack of advocacy from WA conservatives, highlighting the need for improved telecommunications infrastructure and services, especially for indigenous communities.
AnsweredQoN 362Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
For a number of years, the minister’s department has been working on the risk exposure for regional Western Australia that would result from the privatisation of Telstra. Can the minister advise the house about the prospects for telecommunications should Telstra be privatised? What are the risks if the organisation is sold according to the plans of the federal government? Mr A.J. CARPENTER
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Central Kimberley-Pilbara for the question. It is clear that the federal government is planning a huge slush fund for telecommunications in regional Western Australia, one that, on past experience, as far as can be identified, will be dedicated to political, rather than real infrastructure, imperatives. It is unfortunate that the needs of regional Western Australia have been overlooked. This tends to happen for two reasons. Firstly, there are real telecommunications infrastructure problems in Western Australia. We all acknowledge that. Indeed, that is also true for metropolitan Western Australia. This includes broadband access, not only in regional areas, where the resource industry is driving the national economy, but also in industrial areas in the metropolitan area, where businesses are facing access problems. This also affects residential areas, which suffer from broadband and mobile telephone flat spots. My electorate fits that category. The state needs standards of services to be met, in network reliability and maintenance presence in regional Western Australia, as recommended by the Estens inquiry. Funding is needed for the Wireless North project - I have raised this issue before - for mobile coverage on the highway between Geraldton and Broome, for which the federal government has refused funding. Changes are needed in universal service obligations, to include standard telephone access and payphone access, as recommended by the Estens inquiry, plus the addition of Internet access at a reliable speed. Regulation changes are required, specifically to allow other providers equal access to the basic network infrastructure at regulated and competitive prices, and shared access to common distribution ducts and wireless transmission masts. The establishment of a special commonwealth-state fund for the provision of telecommunication services to indigenous communities is another area we are looking at. Because of the remoteness of these communities, they are unlikely ever to be commercially viable for the general telecommunication companies to address, and each community will have unique issues for preferred solutions. The second, and major, reason that the federal government’s approach is bad for Western Australia if Telstra is to be sold is that the conservative side of politics in WA is not speaking up for WA. Barnaby Joyce was the darling of the National Party at the recent party convention in Merredin. I can tell members that Mr Joyce is an interesting character. He is interested in the state that he represents - Queensland. I have no doubt that the towns near where Mr Joyce lives in Queensland will be covered in money if this agreement goes ahead. We all know that regional Western Australia will be ignored because John Howard knows that he can rely on the conservatives in Western Australia to not speak up for WA. We all recognise that. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for Central Kimberley-Pilbara for the question. It is clear that the federal government is planning a huge slush fund for telecommunications in regional Western Australia, one that, on past experience, as far as can be identified, will be dedicated to political, rather than real infrastructure, imperatives. It is unfortunate that the needs of regional Western Australia have been overlooked. This tends to happen for two reasons. Firstly, there are real telecommunications infrastructure problems in Western Australia. We all acknowledge that. Indeed, that is also true for metropolitan Western Australia. This includes broadband access, not only in regional areas, where the resource industry is driving the national economy, but also in industrial areas in the metropolitan area, where businesses are facing access problems. This also affects residential areas, which suffer from broadband and mobile telephone flat spots. My electorate fits that category. The state needs standards of services to be met, in network reliability and maintenance presence in regional Western Australia, as recommended by the Estens inquiry. Funding is needed for the Wireless North project - I have raised this issue before - for mobile coverage on the highway between Geraldton and Broome, for which the federal government has refused funding. Changes are needed in universal service obligations, to include standard telephone access and payphone access, as recommended by the Estens inquiry, plus the addition of Internet access at a reliable speed. Regulation changes are required, specifically to allow other providers equal access to the basic network infrastructure at regulated and competitive prices, and shared access to common distribution ducts and wireless transmission masts. The establishment of a special commonwealth-state fund for the provision of telecommunication services to indigenous communities is another area we are looking at. Because of the remoteness of these communities, they are unlikely ever to be commercially viable for the general telecommunication companies to address, and each community will have unique issues for preferred solutions. The second, and major, reason that the federal government’s approach is bad for Western Australia if Telstra is to be sold is that the conservative side of politics in WA is not speaking up for WA. Barnaby Joyce was the darling of the National Party at the recent party convention in Merredin. I can tell members that Mr Joyce is an interesting character. He is interested in the state that he represents - Queensland. I have no doubt that the towns near where Mr Joyce lives in Queensland will be covered in money if this agreement goes ahead. We all know that regional Western Australia will be ignored because John Howard knows that he can rely on the conservatives in Western Australia to not speak up for WA. We all recognise that. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
I thank the member for Central Kimberley-Pilbara for the question. It is clear that the federal government is planning a huge slush fund for telecommunications in regional Western Australia, one that, on past experience, as far as can be identified, will be dedicated to political, rather than real infrastructure, imperatives. It is unfortunate that the needs of regional Western Australia have been overlooked. This tends to happen for two reasons. Firstly, there are real telecommunications infrastructure problems in Western Australia. We all acknowledge that. Indeed, that is also true for metropolitan Western Australia. This includes broadband access, not only in regional areas, where the resource industry is driving the national economy, but also in industrial areas in the metropolitan area, where businesses are facing access problems. This also affects residential areas, which suffer from broadband and mobile telephone flat spots. My electorate fits that category. The state needs standards of services to be met, in network reliability and maintenance presence in regional Western Australia, as recommended by the Estens inquiry. Funding is needed for the Wireless North project - I have raised this issue before - for mobile coverage on the highway between Geraldton and Broome, for which the federal government has refused funding. Changes are needed in universal service obligations, to include standard telephone access and payphone access, as recommended by the Estens inquiry, plus the addition of Internet access at a reliable speed. Regulation changes are required, specifically to allow other providers equal access to the basic network infrastructure at regulated and competitive prices, and shared access to common distribution ducts and wireless transmission masts. The establishment of a special commonwealth-state fund for the provision of telecommunication services to indigenous communities is another area we are looking at. Because of the remoteness of these communities, they are unlikely ever to be commercially viable for the general telecommunication companies to address, and each community will have unique issues for preferred solutions. The second, and major, reason that the federal government’s approach is bad for Western Australia if Telstra is to be sold is that the conservative side of politics in WA is not speaking up for WA. Barnaby Joyce was the darling of the National Party at the recent party convention in Merredin. I can tell members that Mr Joyce is an interesting character. He is interested in the state that he represents - Queensland. I have no doubt that the towns near where Mr Joyce lives in Queensland will be covered in money if this agreement goes ahead. We all know that regional Western Australia will be ignored because John Howard knows that he can rely on the conservatives in Western Australia to not speak up for WA. We all recognise that. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Ms S.E. Walker interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for Central Kimberley-Pilbara for the question. It is clear that the federal government is planning a huge slush fund for telecommunications in regional Western Australia, one that, on past experience, as far as can be identified, will be dedicated to political, rather than real infrastructure, imperatives. It is unfortunate that the needs of regional Western Australia have been overlooked. This tends to happen for two reasons. Firstly, there are real telecommunications infrastructure problems in Western Australia. We all acknowledge that. Indeed, that is also true for metropolitan Western Australia. This includes broadband access, not only in regional areas, where the resource industry is driving the national economy, but also in industrial areas in the metropolitan area, where businesses are facing access problems. This also affects residential areas, which suffer from broadband and mobile telephone flat spots. My electorate fits that category. The state needs standards of services to be met, in network reliability and maintenance presence in regional Western Australia, as recommended by the Estens inquiry. Funding is needed for the Wireless North project - I have raised this issue before - for mobile coverage on the highway between Geraldton and Broome, for which the federal government has refused funding. Changes are needed in universal service obligations, to include standard telephone access and payphone access, as recommended by the Estens inquiry, plus the addition of Internet access at a reliable speed. Regulation changes are required, specifically to allow other providers equal access to the basic network infrastructure at regulated and competitive prices, and shared access to common distribution ducts and wireless transmission masts. The establishment of a special commonwealth-state fund for the provision of telecommunication services to indigenous communities is another area we are looking at. Because of the remoteness of these communities, they are unlikely ever to be commercially viable for the general telecommunication companies to address, and each community will have unique issues for preferred solutions. The second, and major, reason that the federal government’s approach is bad for Western Australia if Telstra is to be sold is that the conservative side of politics in WA is not speaking up for WA. Barnaby Joyce was the darling of the National Party at the recent party convention in Merredin. I can tell members that Mr Joyce is an interesting character. He is interested in the state that he represents - Queensland. I have no doubt that the towns near where Mr Joyce lives in Queensland will be covered in money if this agreement goes ahead. We all know that regional Western Australia will be ignored because John Howard knows that he can rely on the conservatives in Western Australia to not speak up for WA. We all recognise that. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
I thank the member for Central Kimberley-Pilbara for the question. It is clear that the federal government is planning a huge slush fund for telecommunications in regional Western Australia, one that, on past experience, as far as can be identified, will be dedicated to political, rather than real infrastructure, imperatives. It is unfortunate that the needs of regional Western Australia have been overlooked. This tends to happen for two reasons. Firstly, there are real telecommunications infrastructure problems in Western Australia. We all acknowledge that. Indeed, that is also true for metropolitan Western Australia. This includes broadband access, not only in regional areas, where the resource industry is driving the national economy, but also in industrial areas in the metropolitan area, where businesses are facing access problems. This also affects residential areas, which suffer from broadband and mobile telephone flat spots. My electorate fits that category. The state needs standards of services to be met, in network reliability and maintenance presence in regional Western Australia, as recommended by the Estens inquiry. Funding is needed for the Wireless North project - I have raised this issue before - for mobile coverage on the highway between Geraldton and Broome, for which the federal government has refused funding. Changes are needed in universal service obligations, to include standard telephone access and payphone access, as recommended by the Estens inquiry, plus the addition of Internet access at a reliable speed. Regulation changes are required, specifically to allow other providers equal access to the basic network infrastructure at regulated and competitive prices, and shared access to common distribution ducts and wireless transmission masts. The establishment of a special commonwealth-state fund for the provision of telecommunication services to indigenous communities is another area we are looking at. Because of the remoteness of these communities, they are unlikely ever to be commercially viable for the general telecommunication companies to address, and each community will have unique issues for preferred solutions. The second, and major, reason that the federal government’s approach is bad for Western Australia if Telstra is to be sold is that the conservative side of politics in WA is not speaking up for WA. Barnaby Joyce was the darling of the National Party at the recent party convention in Merredin. I can tell members that Mr Joyce is an interesting character. He is interested in the state that he represents - Queensland. I have no doubt that the towns near where Mr Joyce lives in Queensland will be covered in money if this agreement goes ahead. We all know that regional Western Australia will be ignored because John Howard knows that he can rely on the conservatives in Western Australia to not speak up for WA. We all recognise that. Ms S.E. Walker interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Ms S.E. Walker interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : History shows that conservative political slush funds end up on the east coast, and the member for Merredin - Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Ms S.E. Walker interjected. Withdrawal of Remark The SPEAKER : Order, member for Nedlands! I direct the member to withdraw that comment. Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Ms S.E. WALKER : I withdraw. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Merredin had a role to play at seeing that issue addressed by the National Party at the federal level, and I encourage him to continue to do so. Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
Telecommunication infrastructure is absolutely critical for the functioning of a modern economy. Telecommunications bulldozes the world flat and theoretically provides everybody with an equal opportunity to take part in business and industry advances. We need that opportunity in Western Australia. I am concerned that we will miss out if the approach of the current federal government continues. There is an opportunity for all Western Australians to try to address this issue. Again, there is a great responsibility on our federal members of Parliament - particularly those in the government - to apply pressure to the federal government. There are no Western Australian Nationals at the federal level, but members of the National Party in the other states also should apply pressure to the federal government to ensure that not only Queensland and Tasmania but also Western Australia benefit from the sale of Telstra if it goes ahead. My fear is that we will not benefit from it, and that we will miss out.
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