James Riley
Friday, 12 March 2010 13:01
Opinion and Analysis
Page 1 of 3
The Rudd Government's proposed telecommunications reform legislation has given Steve Fielding the opportunity to make a hero of himself in front of 1.4 million Telstra shareholders – by voting against it.
In an election year, do you think he's going to do anything other than grandstand the issue? This bloke woke up after the 2004 election to find himself in the Senate not by accident, but through a weird-arsed preferences bungle made in Victoria by Labor.
His six-year term is up and he has a hill to climb to get himself re-elected. The Victorian Family First senator is looking for votes out of Telstra.
And he's not the only one. The Coalition, which last year looked fragmented on the reform legislation, is now showing a united front. And they are starting to see some traction among Telstra shareholders.
We know the Telstra crowd are watching this issue like hawks because of the Telstra share price, which has climbed steadily – if not heroically, given the battering it has suffered – all week on news that the legislation looks like getting knocked back.
With Senator Fielding, the Opposition has the numbers roll the Government on what is the most important piece of telecommunications-related legislation the Parliament has seen in 20 years. The vote is expected early next week, most likely on Tuesday or Wednesday.
At this point it is headed for defeat. The Nationals have moved into lock-step behind their coalition partners, and Fielding has said he doesn't like the idea of Telstra having to negotiate with the NBN Co with a legislated gun to its head. Yawn.
He wants more time for Telstra to come to favourable terms with the NBN Co before he has to decide. He objects to the gun-to-the-head thing. Apparently he didn't get the memo telling everyone the bill itself is the only reason Telstra is even sitting at the negotiating table.
This is the insanity of Steve Fielding. This is a bloke who says he represents Australian families, and he is planning to knock back legislation that will deliver better communications services at lower prices to a hell of a lot more than 1.4 million self-interested Telstra owners (although it will deliver those outcomes to them too.)
