Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

[by video link] Imagine your partner is desperately ill. You have to call an ambulance to your home but find you can't do so because your mobile reception is so poor. Unbelievably, this is the reality for residents living in a new housing estate in Armstrong Creek, just near Geelong. Many residents in this rapidly growing area of 16,000 people, which includes Warralily and Mount Duneed, are being let down by their mobile phone companies and by Commonwealth government inaction. We have long known Armstrong Creek would become one of the fastest-growing areas in Australia yet telcos and the Commonwealth government have failed to plan for adequate mobile services of residents.

After getting many complaints about poor or non-existent mobile coverage and frequent call drop-outs, I've begun a petition and already have 400 signatures. I've also held a virtual community meeting with shadow communications minister, Michelle Rowland, to better understand the problem. Attendance reflected the high level of frustration, with over 120 people registered. I felt it opened a hornet's nest, as story after story came out about mobile phone failures.

The COVID pandemic has exacerbated the problem because so many people are now working from home or home schooling with unreliable or non-existent mobile connectivity. Often people can only get coverage out the front of their house or in one particular room. Sometimes whole streets seem to be mobile-free zones. My own calls drop out often as I am travelling about Armstrong Creek on official business. For many people it is more than just simply frustrating; it's a matter of life and death.

Kate shared her emotional story of a medical emergency where her husband had collapsed, needing an ambulance. Receiving the instructions over the phone from a triple-zero paramedic while waiting for the ambulance was near impossible. Kate, a neighbour and a brickie, who was working across the road, all tried unsuccessfully to get coverage on their phones. All were on different mobile networks, so all three networks failed. Thankfully, Kate's husband did get to hospital and is now fine, but the couple live in fear of a recurrence.

I'm now talking about taking Armstrong Creek's concerns directly to the management of the three big mobile phone carriers. This is a bigger issue. Clearly the problem is serious and widespread. The telcos are not keeping up with the population and housing growth in the area and the resulting demand for mobile services. The Morrison government is also not doing its part; telecommunications is a federal responsibility. We must have robust requirements for telcos to provide adequate mobile services to new urban communities like Armstrong Creek.