James Riley
Friday, 23 October 2009 13:36
Opinion and Analysis
Page 1 of 3
The Rudd Government's telecommunications reform package passed through the House today, and will be debated in the Senate next week in what is shaping to the most important the industry has seen in a generation.
The lead up to a big week generates its own gravitational pull
on the sector under debate, and even though the Senate was up to its
eyeballs in Estimates hearing, the spectre of telecommunications bill
loomed large.
So when I spied The Lord Carter of Barnes (who until a year ago was
just Stephen Carter) sitting at the Parliament coffee shop this week it
made perfect sense.
In a previous role, Stephen Carter was Minister for Communications,
Technology and Broadcasting in the UK – at the time with BT was
functionally separated and the open access network OpenReach was
created. This came about through a voluntary agreement between BT and
the UK’s telecommunications regulator Ofcom.
The Lord Carter knows a bit about this stuff. He has moved on to the
private sector with a company called The Numbers – broadly a directory
services business that has set up in markets around the world as they
have deregulated and opportunities present.
So Australia is starting to look good. How good will depend a lot on
what happens in the Senate next week. And the Baron was doing the
rounds of parliamentary offices like everyone else – offering some
wisdom.
We know he met with the Minister Stephen Conroy and would assume too he
met with shadow spokesman Nick Minchin. And he met with the Nationals
Fiona Nash.
Which brings us to the party of regional Australia.
CONTINUED Page 2
