A couple of weeks ago Senator Stephen Conroy announced regulatory reform for the telecommunications industry. It encouraged Telstra to voluntarily structurally separate its wholesale and retail divisions, or be forced to functionally separate and relinquish their shares in Foxtel.
This would require changes to telecommunications legislation, so it is dependent on getting bills through parliament. Nick Minichin has made it clear the Opposition is not behind the reforms, so getting them through the Senate depends on the support of the Greens, independents and, perhaps, the Nationals.
So, has he got the numbers? On this week’s Twisted Wire I do a ring around to see which parties are supportive and which are against. You’ll hear from:
- Senator Nick Xenophon, Independent senator for South Australia
- Senator Scott Ludlum, the Australian Greens
- Senator Barnaby Joyce, leader of the Nationals in the Senate
I’ve also been through the Twisted Wire archives to grab sound bites from Stephen Conroy, Nick Minichin and the Liberal party’s newest member.
-
Markets still at odds with RBA and ECB. Who’s right?
The RBA doesn’t expect to raise rates this year says Ivan Colhoun. They’re in a similar position to the ECB says Rodrigo Catril, even though inflation is clearly on the march.
-
A very social riot
It’s now known that BlackBerry Messenger was used extensively to spread the word on the UK riots. Does that mean that authorities should be able to shut down networks used to incite civil unrest?
-
Telstra: We hear separation rumours
Is the government manoeuvring towards a structural separation of Telstra?
